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HISTORIC 
FREDERICKSBURG 


t  JoknT  Goolr  ick_ 

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JIJDCLlB&iSJ 


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Historic  Fredericksburg 


Historic 
Fredericksburg 

The  Story  of  an  Old  Town 


By 
John  T.  Goolrick 

AUTHOR    OF 

'The   Life   of  General  Hugh    Mercer' 

"Irishmen  in  the  Civil  War" 

Etc, 


Printed  In  U.  S,  A. 

by 

WHITTET  &   SHEPPERSON    RICHMOND  VA. 

I'hotographi  By 

DAVIS  GALLERY,    FREDERICKSBURG  VA. 


COPYRIGHT,   1^22 
JOHN   T.   G0OLR1CK 


■J 


Cfjis;  iBooii  is  ZDcbuatfb 

3Eo  one  tobo  bag  not  faileb  tier  frienbs,  or  ber  burp. 

?KHf)o  fjasf  gtben  freelp  of  tjcr  best. 

SRHfiojSe  faith  has  not  faltereb,  nor  courage  bimmeb. 

<E2Sbb  has  ticlb  high  her  i&rals;  tufjo  has  Iigbteb 

a  patbtnap  for  those  she  lobes. 

&o  fflp  WLiit 


FREDERICKSBURG 

A  Preface 

Fredericksburg  sprawls  at  the  foot  of  the  hills  where  the 
scented  summer  winds  sweep  over  it  out  of  the  valley  of 
brawling  waters  above.  The  grass  grows  lush  in  the  meadows 
and  tangles  in  the  hills  that  almost  surround  it.  In  spring  the 
flowers  streak  the  lowlands,  climb  on  the  slopes,  and  along  the 
ridges;  and  Autumn  makes  fair  colors  in  the  trees,  shading 
them  in  blood  crimson,  weathered  bronze,  and  the  yellow  of 
sunsets. 

Over  its  shadowed  streets  hangs  the  haze  of  history.  It 
is  not  rich  nor  proud,  because  it  has  not  sought;  it  is  quiet 
and  content,  because  it  has  sacrificed.  It  gave  its  energy  to 
the  Revolution.  It  gave  its  heart  to  the  Confederacy;  and, 
once  when  it  was  thundered  at  by  guns,  and  red  flames  twisted 
in  its  crumbling  homes,  it  gave  its  soul  and  all  it  possessed  to 
the  South.    It  never  abated  its  loyalty  nor  cried  out  its  sorrows. 

In  Fredericksburg,  and  on  the  battlefields  near  it,  almost 
thirty  thousand  men  lay  on  the  last  couch  in  the  shadowy 
forests  and — we  think — heard  Her  voice  calling  and  comfort- 
ing them.  To  the  wounded,  the  Old  Town  gave  its  best,  not 
visioning  the  color  of  their  uniforms,  nursing  them  back  to 
life :  And,  broken  and  twisted  and  in  poverty,  it  began  to  re- 
build itself  and  gather  up  the  shattered  ideals  of  its  dead  past. 

Out  of  its  heart  has  grown  simple  kindness ;  out  of  its 
soul  simple  faith. 

As  I  look  out  over  the  streets,  (I  knew  them  well  when 
Lee  and  Jackson  and  Stuart,  Lincoln  and  Grant  and  Hancock 


knew  them  too),  they  shimmer  in  the  Autumn  sun.  Over 
them,  as  has  ever  seemed  to  me,  hangs  an  old  and  haunting 
beauty.  There  may  not  be  as  great  men  here  as  long  ago, 
but  here  are  their  descendants  and  the  descendants  of  others 
like  them.  And  he  who  comes  among  them  will  find  loyal 
hearts  and  warm  hand-clasps. 

Ah,  I  know  the  old  town.  My  bare  feet  ran  along  its 
unpaved  walks  and  passed  the  cabins  many  a  time  in  slavery 
days.  I  knew  it  in  the  Civil  War  and  reconstruction  days, 
and  on  and  on  till  now  :  And  it  has  not  failed  its  duty. 

Fredericksburg's  history  brims  with  achievement  and  ad- 
venture. It  has  not  been  tried  in  this  volume  to  tell  all  of 
these.  I  have  tried  to  tell  a  simple  story,  with  the  flame  of 
achievement  burning  on  the  shrines  and  the  echoes  of  old 
days  sweeping  through  it,  like  low  winds  in  the  pine  woods; 
to  make  men  and  women  mere  vivid  than  dates  and  numbers. 
I  have  tried  to  be  accurate  and  complete  and  to  vision  the 
past,  but  above  all,  I  have  loved  the  things  of  which  I  have 
written. 

There  is  no  possibility  of  expressing  the  gratitude  the 
author  feels  for  the  aid  given  him  by  others,  but  he  must  say, 
briefly,  that  without  the  assistance  of  Miss  Dora  Jett,  Mrs. 
Franklin  Stearns,  Mrs.  John  T.  Goolrick,  and  Dr.  J.  N. 
Barney,  Mr.  Chester  B.  Goolrick  and  Mr.  John  T.  Goolrick,  Jr., 
the  book  could  not  have  been  made  as  readable  as  we  hope 
the  public  will  find  it.  We  owe  just  as  deep  thanks  to  Miss 
Sally  Gravatt  of  the  Wallace  Library. 

Jxo.  T.   Goolrick. 
Fredericksburg,  Va., 
October  25,  1921. 


INTRODUCTION 

Rev.  Robert  Campbell  Gilmore. 


As  a  public  speaker  of  wide  reputation,  especially  on  South- 
ern themes,  Hon.  John  T.  Goolrick,  Judge  of  the  Corporation 
Court  of  Fredericksburg,  Va.,  needs  no  introduction.  It  is 
my  privilege  to  introduce  him  as  a  writer  of  history  to  an  ever 
widening  circle  of  readers.  Other  men  can  gather  facts  and 
put  them  in  logical  order,  but  few  can  give  the  history  of  the 
old  town  of  Fredericksburg  such  filial  sympathy  and  interest, 
such  beauty  of  local  color,  as  can  this  loyal  son. 

The  father,  Peter  Goolrick,  a  man  of  fine  education, 
came  from  Ireland  and  made  his  home  in  Fredericksburg,  and 
was  mayor  of  the  town. 

The  son  has  always  lived  here.  The  war  between  the 
States'  came  in  his  boyhood.  His  first  connection  with  the  Con- 
federacy was  as  a  messenger  at  the  Medical  Department  head- 
quarters of  General  Lee.  Growing  old  enough  and  tiring  of 
protected  service  he  enlisted  in  Braxton's  Battery  of  Freder- 
icksburg Artillery.  He  was  wounded  at  Fort  Harrison,  but 
recovering,  returned  to  his  command  and  served  to  the  end  of 
the  war  as  "a  distinguished  private  soldier,"  and  surrendered 
with  "The  last  eight  thousand'  at  Appomattox.  Since  the  war 
he  has  been  prominently  connected  with  Confederate  affairs. 
At  one  time  he  was  Commander  of  the  local  Camp  of  Vet- 
erans and  is  now  on  the  staff  of  the  Commander  of  all  the 
Veterans  of  the  South  and  Virginia. 

After  the  war  young  Goolrick  studied  law,  was  elected 
Judge  of  the  Corporation  Court  of  Fredericksburg,  and  of  the 
County  Court  of  Spotsylvania,  served  for  a  time  as  Common- 
wealth's Attorney  of  Fredericksburg,  and  later  was  re-elected 


Judge  of  the  Corporation  Court,  which  position  he  has  held 
for  sixteen  years,  and  which  he  now  holds.  He  has  been  the 
inceptor  often,  and  always  a  worker,  in  every  public  event 
in  the  town. 

This  is  not  Judge  Goolrick's  first  appearance  as  a  writer. 
He  has  contributed  many  articles  to  newspapers,  and  maga- 
zines, and  has  published  several  books.  He  is  thus  particu- 
larly fitted  to  *write  the  history  of  his  own  beloved  town. 


Contents 

In  The  Older  Days 13 

One  by  one  the  little  cabins  are  built  along  the  river  bank 
After  the  Revolution    26 

In  the  days  of  its  glory,  the  Old  Town  was  famed  and  prosperous 
War's   Worst   Horrors    37 

Shelled  by  181  guns  for  hours,  the  town  becomes  a  crumbled  ruin 
The   First   Battle    48 

When,   at   Marye's  Heights   and   Hamilton's   Crossing,   war   claimed    her 

sacrifice 

At  Chancellorsville   55 

The  Struggle  in  the  Pine  Woods  when  death  struck  at  Southern  hearts' 

Two  Great  Battles 64 

The  fearful  fire  swept  Wilderness,  and  the  Bloody  Angle  at  Spottsylvania 

Heroes  of  Early  Days   70 

The  Old  Town  gives  the  first  Commander,  first  Admiral  and  Great  Citizens 

Men  of  Modern  Times   98 

Soldiers,  Adventurers  and  Sailors,  Heroes  and  Artists,  mingle  here 
Unforgotten    Women    123 

Some  of  Many  Who  Left  a  Record  of  Brilliancy,  Service  or  Sacrifice 
At  the  Rising  Sun  133 

Where  Famous  Men  Met;  and  Mine  Host  Brewed  Punch  and  Sedition 
Lafayette   Comes   Back    139 

After  Forty   Years  of  Failure,  He  Hears  the  Echo  of  His  Youthful 

Triumph 

Old  Court  Record    142 

Staid  Documents,  Writ  by  Hands  That  Are  Still,  Arc  History  For  Us 

Echoes  of  the  Past 151 

"Ghosts  of  Dead  Hours,  and  Days  That  Once  Were  Fair" 

Where  Beauty  Blends   165 

Old  Gardens,  at  Old  Mansions,  Where  Bloom  Flowers  from  Long  Ago 

Church   and  School    173 

How  They  Grew  in  the  New  World;  Pathways  to  the  Light 

The  Church  of  England  181 

First  in  Virginia,  the  Church  of  England  Has  the  Longest  History 

The  250TH  Birthday    188 

Fredericksburg   Celebrates   an   Anniversary 
Appendix    199 


Historic  Fredericksburg 

In  the  Older  Days 

One  by  one  the  little  cabins  are  built  along  the  ri-uer  bank — 


E 


■NVELOPED  in  the  perfume  of  old  English  boxwood 
and  the  fragrance  of  still  older  poplars,  and  permeated  with 
the  charm  of  a  two  hundred  and  fifty  year  old  atmosphere, 
the  town  of  Fredericksburg,  Virginia,  nestles  in  the  soft  foli- 
age along  the  banks  of  the  Rappahannock,  at  the  point  where 
the  turbulent  waters  of  the  upper  river  rush  abruptly  against 
the  back-wash  of  the  sea,  an  odd  but  pleasing  mixture  of  the 
old  and  the  new. 

Subtly  rich  with  the  elegance  of  the  past,  it  looks  proudly 
back  across  its  two  and  a  half  centuries,  but  it  has  not  forgotten 
how  to  live  in  the  present,  and  combines  delightfully  all  that  it 
has  of  the  old  with  much  that  is  new  and  modern. 

Perhaps  no  other  community  in  the  country  has  had  a 
more  intimate  and  constant  association  with  the  political  and 
historic  growth  of  America  than  Fredericksburg.  From  the 
earliest  Colonial  period,  when  it  was  a  place  of  importance,  it 
traces  its  influence  on  the  nation's  development  down  through 
the  Revolutionary  war,  the  War  of  1812,  the  Mexican 
and  Civil  wars  and  the  periods  of  national  progress  between 
those  conflicts,  and  even  today,  when  the  old  town  has  lost  its 
touch  with  affairs  as  an  important  community,  it  still  can  claim 
a  close  connection  with  events  through  the  influence  of  its 
descendants  —  sons  and  daughters  —  who  have  gone  forth  in 
the  world  and  achieved  leadership  in  movements  of  the  day 
that  are  aiding  in  shaping  the  destiny  of  mankind ;  and  of 
these  another  chapter  tells. 

13 


The  Spanish  Missionaries 

But  while  proud  of  the  accomplishments  of  these,  the  old 
town  does  not  depend  upon  them  for  distinction.  It  bases  its 
claim  to  this  on  the  events  with  which  it  actually  has  been  asso- 
ciated, and  the  importance  of  the  part  it  has  played  in  the  past 
is  proved  by  data  found  in  the  recorded  annals  of  the  country. 

It  might,  indeed,  if  it  sought  historical  recognition  on 
accepted  legend  rather  than  known  fact,  assert  an  origin  that 
antidates  that  of  the  first  English  permanent  colony  in  America. 
A  historian,  writing  in  the  Magazine  of  American  History, 
says  the  spot  now  occupied  by  Fredericksburg  was  first  discov- 
ered in  1 57 1  by  Spanish  Missionaries,  who  erected  there  the 
first  Christian  shrine  in  America.  It  is  almost  certain  the  town 
was  settled  in  1621,  three  hundred  years  ago,  but  this  cannot 
be  definitely  proven,  and  the  town  has  not  claimed  it  as  a  date 
in  its  established  history.  It  does  not  claim  to  have  had  a 
beginning  with  the  recorded  arrival  of  Captain  John  Smith, 
one  year  after  the  settlement  of  Jamestown,  but  takes  as  its 
birthdate  May  2d,  1671,  at  which  time  the  site  was  legally 
recognized  by  a  grant  from  Sir  William  Berkley,  then  Colonial 
governor,  to  John  Royston  and  Thomas  Buckner,  who  are 
looked  upon  as  the  real  founders  of  community  life  at  the  spot 
now  occupied  by  Fredericksburg. 

Whether  or  not  white  men  first  reached  the  location  as 
earl}'  as  the  suggested  arrival  of  the  Spanish  Missionaries 
probably  must  always  remain  a  mystery,  though  there  arc 
reasons  to  believe  that  this  is  entirely  probable,  as  it  is  known 
that  Spaniards  made  an  early  effort  at  colonization  in  Vir- 
ginia, and  in  1526  came  up  the  James  River  from  Haiti 
with  six  hundred  people,  and,  with  main'  negro  slaves  as  work- 
men, founded  the  town  of  Miguel,  near  where  Jamestown 
afterwards  was  establishd  by  Captain  John  Smith,  it  is  prob- 
able that  these  pioneers  ventured  into  the  surrounding  country, 
and  not  at  all  unlikely  that  some  of  them  strayed  as  far  as  the 
falls  of  the  Rappahannock. 

But  if  the  data  are  not  sufficient  to  actually  prove  this  early 
visit  to  the  site,  it  is  a  fact  of  record  in  the  diary  of  "Chirur- 

14 


Captain   Smith's  First    Visit 

geon"  Bagnall,  a  member  of  the  party,  that  Captain  Smith 
reached  the  spot  in  1608,  one  year  after  the  establishment  of 
Jamestown,  and  after  successfully  disputing  possession  of  the 
land  with  a  tribe  of  Indians,  disembarked  and  planted  a  cross, 
later  prospecting  for  gold  and  other  precious  metals.  The  diary 
of  Smith's  companions,  still  in  existence,  tells  of  the  trip  in 
accurate  detail  and  from  it  is  proven  that  even  if  the  Spanish 
missionaries  did  not  come  as  far  as  claimed  for  them,  at  least 
the  Indians  had  recognized  the  natural  advantages  of  the  place 
by  the  establishment  there  of  towns,  which  might  have  been  in 
existence  for  hundreds  of  years. 

Captain  Smith  made  two  attempts  to  explore  the  Rappahan- 
nock. The  first,  in  June,  1608,  ended  when  the  hardy  adven- 
turer in  plunging  his  sword  into  "a  singular  fish,  like  a  thorn- 
back  with  a  long  tail,  and  from  it  a  poison  sting,"  ran  afoul  of 
the  water  monster  and  because  of  his  sufferings  was  obliged 
to  turn  back.  The  second  trip  was  started  on  July  24th,  1608, 
and  was  continued  until  the  falls  wrere  reached. 

Dr.  Bagnall  says  in  his  diary  that  when  near  the  mouth  of 
the  river,  the  party  encountered  "our  old  friend,  Mosco,  a  lusty 
savage  of  YVighconscio,  upon  the  Patawomeck,''  who  accom- 
panied them  as  guide  and  interpreter,  and  upon  reaching  the 
falls  did  splendid  service  against  the  unfriendly  Indians,  "mak- 
ing them  pause  upon  the  matter,  thinking  by  his  bruit  and  skip- 
ping there  were  many  savages."  In  the  fighting  Captain 
Smith's  party  captured  a  wounded  Indian  and  much,  to  the 
disgust  of  the  cheerful  Mosco,  who  wished  to  dispatch  him 
forthwith,  spared  his  life  and  bound  his  wounds.  This  work 
of  mercy  resulted  in  a  truce  with  the  Redmen,  which  made 
possible  the  final  undisturbed  settlement  of  the  land  by  the 
whites,  the  prisoner  interceding  for  Smith  and  his  party. 

Captain  Smith's  first  landing  on  the  upper  river  probably 
was  directly  opposite  what  now  is  the  heart  of  Fredericksburg. 
Dr.  Bagnall's  diary  says: 

"Between  Secobeck  and  Alassawteck  is  a  small  isle  or  two, 
which  causes  the  river  to  be  broader  than  ordinary;  there  it 

15 


About   The  Indian  Villages 

pleased  God  to  take  one  oi  our  company,  called  Master  Feather- 
stone,  that  all  the  time  he  had  been  in  this  country  had  behaved 
himself  honestly,  valiently  and  industriously,  where  in  a  little 
bay,  called  Featherstone's  bay.  we  buried  him  with  a  volley 
oi  shot      *      *      * 

"The  next  day  we  sailed  so  high  as  our  boat  would  float, 
there  setting  up  crosses  and  graving  our  names  on  trees." 

Captain  Quinn,  in  his  excellent  History  of  Fredericks- 
burg, says  that  Featherstone's  bay  *'is  in  Stafford,  opposite 
the  upper  end  of  Hunter's  island,"  but  it  is  probable  he  did  not 
closely  examine  facts  before  making  this  statement,  as  his  own 
location  of  other  places  mentioned  in  Dr.  Bagnall's  diary  serves 
to  disprove  his  contention  as  to  the  whereabouts  of  the  bay. 

"Seacobeck,"  Captain  Quinn  says,  "was  just  west  of  the 
city  almshouse."  The  almshouse  was  then  situated  where  the 
residence  of  the  President  of  the  State  Xormal  School  now 
stands.  Massawteck,  Captain  Quinn  locates  as  "just  back  of 
Chatham."  If  his  location  ^i  these  two  places  is  correct,  it  is 
clear  that  the  "small  isle  or  two,"  which  the  diary  says  was 
located  between  them,  must  have  been  at  a  point  where  a  line 
drawn  from  the  President's  residence,  at  the  Xormal  School, 
to  "just  back  of  Chatham"  would  intersect  the  river,  which 
would  be  just  a  little  above  the  present  location  *)i  Scott's 
island,  and  that  Featherstone's  bay  occupied  what  now  are  the 
Stafford  flats,  extending  along  the  river  bank  from  nearly 
opposite  the  silk  mill  to  the  high  bank  just  above  the  railroad 
bridge  and  followed  the  course  of  Claibourne's  Run  inland,  to 
where  the  land  again  rises.  The  contours  of  tlie  land,  if  fol- 
lowed, here  show  a  natural  depression  that  might  easily  have 
accommodated  a  body  of  water,  forming  a  bay. 

There  are  other  evidences  to  bear  out  this  conclusion. 
Dr.  Bagnall's  diary  says:  "The  next  day  we  sailed  so  high  as 
our  boat  would  float."  It  would  have  been  an  impossibility 
to  proceed  "high"  (  meaning  up)  the  river  from  Hunter's  island 
in  boats,  even  had  it  been  possible  to  go  as  high  as  that  point. 

16 


Establishment  of  the  Town 

Notwithstanding  contradictory  legend,  the  falls  of  the  Rappa- 
hannock have  been  where  they  are  today  for  from  five  to 
one  hundred  thousand  years,  and  there  is  no  evidence  whatever 
to  indicate  that  Hunter's  Island  ever  extended  into'  tidewater, 
the  formation  of  the  banks  of  the  river  about  that  point  giving 
almost  absolute  proof  that  it  did  not. 

No  authentic  data  can  be  found  to  prove  the  continued  use 
of  the  site  as  a  settlement  from  Smith's  visit  forward,  though 
the  gravestone  of  a  Dr.  Edmond  Hedler,  bearing  the  date 
1617,  which  was  found  near  Potomac  run  in  Stafford  county, 
a  few  miles  from  the  town,  would  indicate  that  there  were 
white  settlers  in  the  section  early  in  the  17th  century,  and 
if  this  is  true  there  is  every  reason  to  believe  the  falls  of  the 
Rappahannock  were  not  without  their  share,  as  the  natural 
advantages  of  the  place  for  community  settlement  would  have 
been  appealing  and  attractive  to  the  colonists,  who  would 
have  been  quick  to  recognize  them. 

In  1622,  according  to  Howe's  history,  Captain  Smith  pro- 
posed to  the  London  Company  to  provide  measures  "to  pro- 
tect all  their  planters  from  the  James  to  the  Potowmac  rivers." 
a  territory  that  included  the  Rappahannock  section,  which  can 
be  taken  as  another  indication  of  the  presence  of  settlers  in  the 
latter. 

The  first  legal  record  of  the  place  as  a  community  is  had 
in  167 1  —  strangely  enough  just  one  hundred  years  after  the 
reported  coming  of  the  Spaniards  —  when  Thomas  Royston 
and  John  Buckner  were  granted,  from  Sir  William  Berkley, 
a  certain  tract  of  land  at  "the  falls  of  the  Rappahannock." 
This  was  on  May  2d,  and  shortly  afterward,  together  with  forty 
colonists,  they  were  established  on  what  is  now  the  heart  of 
Fredericksburg,  but  known  in  those  remote  times  as  "Lease- 
land."  This  is  the  date  that  Fredericksburg  officially  takes  as 
its  birthday,  though  additional  evidence  that  colonists  already 
were  in  that  vicinity  is  had  in  the  fact  that  the  boundaries  of 
the  land  described  in  the  grant  from  Governor  Berkley  to 
the  two  early  settlers,  ended  where  the  lands  of  one  Captain 
Lawrence  Smith  began. 

17 


Major  Lawrence  Smith's  Fort 

Three  or  four  years  after  the  grant  was  made  to  Buckner 
and  Royston  the  "Grande  Assemblie  at  James  Cittie"  took 
official  cognizance  of  the  Colony  by  ordering  Major  Lawrence 
Smith  and  one  hundred  and  eleven  men  to  the  Falls  of  the 
Rappahannock  for  the  purpose  of  protecting,  the  colonists. 
Records  in  regard  to  this  say,  "At  a  Grande  Assemblie  at  James 
Cittie,  between  the  20th  of  September,  1674,  and  the  17th  of 
March,  1675,  it  was  ordered  that  one  hundred  and  eleven 
men  out  of  Gloucester  be  garrisoned  at  one  ffort  or  place  of 
defense,  at  or  near  the  falls  of  the  Rappahannock  river,  of 
which  ffort  Major  Lawrence  Smith  is  to  be  captain  or  chief 
commander."  It  was  also  ordered  that  "the  ffort  be  furnished 
with  four  hundred  and  eight  pounds  of  powder  and  fourteen 
hundred  pounds  of  shott." 

A  few  years  later,  in  1679,  Major  Smith  was  authorized  by 
the  Jamestown  government  to  mark  out,  below  the  falls  of  the 
Rappahannock,  a  strip  of  land  one  mile  long  and  one-fourth 
of  a  mile  wide,  to  be  used  as  a  colony  and,  together  with  eight 
commissioners,  he  was  empowered  to  hold  court  and  administer 
justice.  Within  this  confine  he  was  instructed  to  build  habita- 
tions for  two  hundred  and  fifty  men,  fifty  of  whom  were  to  be 
kept  well  armed  and  ready  to  respond  to  the  tap  of  a  drum. 
It  would  appear  that  the  "ffort"  mentioned  in  the  earlier 
meeting  of  the  "Grande  Assemblie"  was  not  built  until  this 
year.  The  contention  that  it  was  erected  on  the  Stafford  side 
of  the  river  seems  to  be  without  any  foundation  of  fact. 

That  the  community  was  now  growing  seems  to  be  proven 
by  the  fact  that  the  same  act,  defining  the  limits  mentioned 
above,  also  mentioned  a  larger  district,  defined  as  extending 
three  miles  above  the  fort  and  two  miles  below  it  for  a  distance 
of  four  miles  back,  over  which  Major  Smith  and  his  com- 
missioner.^  were  to  have  jurisdiction.  Two  years  later,  in 
1 68 1.  the  little  town  received  a  great  impetus  when  two  hun- 
dred families  came  to  join  the  colony.  From  this  time  for- 
ward, the  community  began  to  take  an  important  part  in  the 
life  oi  the  Colonies. 

18 


Falmouth's  Fast  Growth 

In  1 7 10,  upon  the  invitation  of  Baron  de  Graffenried,  a 
friend  of  Governor  Spotswood,  twelve  German  families  came 
to  America  and  settled  on  the  Rapidan  river,  eighteen  miles 
above  Fredericksburg-,  opening  the  first  iron  mines  and  estab- 
lishing the  first  iron  works  in  America.  They  named  the  place 
Germanna.  and,  according  to  an  account  left  by  one  of  the 
party,  "packed  all  their  provisions  from  Fredericksburg,"  then 
the  principal  trading  point  of  the  section. 

In  17 1 5,  Governor  Spotswood  and  the  now-famed 
"Knights  of  the  Golden  Horseshoe,"  started  from  Germanna 
(some  of  them  came  through  Fredericksburg  en  route  and 
stopped  with  Austin  Smith).  Assembling  at  Germanna  they 
left  on  September  24th  and  continued  across  the  Blue  Ridge 
mountains  to  the  Valley  of  Virginia.  An  interesting  account 
of  the  trip,  which  has  been  made  the  theme  of  song  and  story, 
and  even  the  basis  of  a  secret  society,  can  be  found  in  the  diary 
of  John  Fountaine,  a  member  of  the  party. 

For  a  period  nothing  seems  to  have  happened  to  the  com- 
munity of  sufficient  importance  to  be  recorded,  and  for  the 
next  few  years  the  imagination  must  supply  the  story  of  the 
settlement.  It  probably  was  a  village  of  irregular,  straggling 
streets  and  indifferent  houses,  with  a  population  that  struggled 
for  a  living  by  trading,  trapping  and  other  pursuits  of  that  day. 
Its  stores  were  likely  very  good  for  those  times,  but  across 
the  river  it  had  a  rival  in  its  neighbor,  Falmouth,  which  as  a 
place  of  importance  was  fast  catching  up  with  it,  and  soon  was 
destined  to  pass  it,  for  in  1720,  seven  years  earlier  than  "The 
Leaseland,"  it  received  its  charter  from  the  House  of  Bur- 
gesses at  Williamsburg,  who  vested  its  government  in  seven 
trustees. 

If  not  as  a  political  and  social  center,  at  least  as  a  trading 
point,  Falmouth  had  soon  superceded  Fredericksburg.  It  was 
the  market  for  all  the  grain  of  the  upper  country,  which  by 
this  time  was  beginning  to  be  settled,  and  was  in  direct  com- 
mercial communication  with  England,  Europe  and  the  West 
Indies  by  ocean-going  vessels,  which,  when  under   140  tons 

19 


' Leascland"  Is  Chartered 

burden,  could  come  up  to  its  wharves.  It  was  a  great  mill- 
ing center  and  its  merchants  began  to  grow  prosperous  and 
wealthy,  one  of  them,  Mr.  Bazil  Gordon,  accumulating  the 
first  million  dollars  ever  made  in  America,  though  he  was  the 
product  of  a  little  later  date  than  that  now  under  considera- 
tion. 

Grain  brought  out  of  Falmouth  in  boats  larger  than  140 
tons  was  first  put  upon  barges  or  flat  boats  of  large  capacity, 
which  were  conveyed  down  the  river  to  waiting  vessels  and 
transferred  by  slave  labor.  The  stories  heard  of  large  vessels 
docking  at  the  Falmouth  wharves  are  apocryphal;  no  boat 
of  great  tonnage  ever  got  as  far  as  Falmouth.  This  may 
account  for  Fredericksburg's  final  supremacy  over  Falmouth, 
which  doubtless  came  about  the  time  the  first  ferry  was  started, 
permitting  the  planters  to  cross  the  river  with  their  grain  and 
load  directly  to  the  waiting  vessels,  thus  saving  time  and  work, 
valuable  considerations  even  in  those  days  of  abundant  leisure 
and  cheap  slave  labor. 

But,  while  Falmouth  was  progressing  "Leaseland"  was 
also  making  strides,  and  in  1727  it  became  of  sufficient  import- 
ance to  receive  its  charter  from  the  House  of  Burgesses,  and 
was  named  in  honor  of  Frederick,  Prince  of  Wales,  son  of 
George  II.  The  Prince  died  before  ascending  the  throne,  but 
his  son  became  George  III.,  and  it  was  thus  from  the  domina- 
tion of  the  son  of  the  Prince  for  whom  their  town  was  named 
that  the  patriotic  people  of  the  little  village  later  plotted  to 
free  themselves.  The  act  giving  the  town  a  charter  names 
John  Robinson,  Henry  Willis,  Augustine  Smith,  John  Talia- 
ferro, Henry  Beverly,  John  Waller  and  Jeremiah  Crowder  as 
trustees,  and  the  streets  were  named  for  members  of  the  Royal 
family,  names  which  fortunately  endure  today,  despite  an 
attempt  made  some  years  ago  to  modernize  the  town  and  dis- 
card the  beautiful  and  significant  old  names  in  favor  of  the  less 
distinguished  and  uglier  method  of  numerical  and  alphabetical 
designations. 

Settlers  now  were  rapidly  coming  into  the  community 
which   was  growing  in   importance.      In    1732.   Colonel   Byrd 

20 


"Tozun  Fairs''  Are  Begun 


&' 


owner  of  vast  tracts  where  now  stands  the  magnificent  city  of 
Richmond,  an  important  man  in  the  Colonial  life  of  Virginia, 
came  to  Fredericksburg,  calling  on  his  friend,  Colonel  Henry 
Willis,  "top  man  of  the  town,"  as  Colonel  Byrd  refers  to  him  in 
his  very  interesting  account  of  the  visit  preserved  to  posterity. 
Colonel  Byrd  was  impressed  by  Fredericksburg,  particularly  by 
the  stone  jail,  which,  he  said,  seemed  strong  enough  "to  hold 
Jack  Shepherd"  and  with  the  versatility  of  one  Sukey  Living- 
stone, or  Levinston,  doctress  and  coffee  woman.  Some  believe 
that  the  old  stone  building  at  the  Free  Bridge  head  is  the  jail 
referred  to. 

The  seat  of  justice  which  had  been  located  at  Germanna, 
was  this  year  moved  to  Fredericksburg,  St.  George's  parish 
established  and  the  church  erected,  with  Rev.  Patrick  Henry, 
uncle  of  the  famous  orator,  as  its  first  rector. 

In  1738  the  House  of  Burgesses  authorized  the  holding 
twice  annually  of  town  fairs  for  the  sale  of  cattle,  provisions, 
goods,  wares  and  all  kinds  of  merchandise,  and  it  is  easy  to 
understand  how  these  affairs  became  the  most  important  events 
in  the  life  of  the  village,  attracting  plantation  owners  from 
miles  and  taking  on  a  social  as  well  as  business  aspect.  And 
as  the  act  also  provided  that  all  persons  attending  these  fairs 
should  be  immune  from  arrest  for  two  days  previous  and  two 
davs  subsequent  to  the  events,  except  for  capital  offenses  or 
breaches  of  the  peace,  suits,  controversies  and  quarrels  that 
might  arise  during  the  events,  it  can  well  be  imagined  that 
they  were  lively  and  exciting  gatherings. 

One  year  later  the  trustees  found  it  necessary  to  purchase 
additional  land  for  the  accommodation  of  the  growing  popu- 
lation but  a  bargain  was  struck  with  Henry  Willis,  "the  top 
man  of  the  town,"  and  John  Lewis  only  after  the  House  of 
Burgesses  had  taken  up  the  matter  deciding  the  ownership  of 
the  lands  in  question  and  fixing  the  sum  to  be  paid  Willis  at 
fifteen  pounds  and  Lewis  at  five  pounds,  not  a  bad  total  price, 
considering  the  survey  shows  that  only  three  acres  were 
bought. 

21 


Masonry  Is  Established 

The  town  had  now  grown  to  such  importance  as  a  trad- 
ing point  that  the  establishment  of  direct  connections  with  the 
Stafford  shore  was  made  necessary,  and  in  1748  the  first  ferrv 
was  authorized  by  law.  Evidently  from  this  time  forward  the 
town  began  to  forge  ahead  of  its  thriving  neighbor,  Falmouth, 
for  the  lessened  expense  of  transferring  grain  directly  to  the 
waiting  ships  made  it  more  attractive  as  a  market  and  many  of 
the  up-country  people  who  formerly  had  sold  their  gain  and 
traded  in  Falmouth,  now  crossed  on  the  ferry  and  spent  their 
money  with  the  merchants  of  Fredericksburg.  The  establish- 
ment of  Masonry  in  1752,  at  which  time  the  lodge  was  known 
as  "The  Lodge  of  Fredericksburg,"  points  to  the  growing 
importance  of  the  place ;  and  that  the  Colonial  citizens  were 
keenly  alive  to  the  benefits  to  be  derived  from  attracting  indus- 
try to  their  towns  is  attested  to  by  an  act  of  the  General  Assem- 
bly, passed  in  1759.  to  encourage  the  arts  and  manufacturv  in 
the  Colonies,  which  set  up  a  premium  of  five  hundred  pounds 
to  be  awarded  the  citizen  making  the  best  ten  hogsheads  of 
wine  in  any  one  year,  within  eight  years  from  the  passage  of 
the  act.  A  number  of  citizens  of  the  town  contributed  to  the 
fund,  among  them  George  Washington,  who  gave  two  pounds. 
In  the  Indian  wars  of  1755-57,  Fredericksburg  became  an 
important  depot  and  rendezvous  for  troops.  Recruits,  provi- 
sions, supplies  and  ordnances  were  sent  to  the  town  in  quan- 
tities, and  on  April  15th,  1757,  Governor  Dimviddie  ordered 
Colonel  George  Washington  to  send  two  hundred  men  there  to 
be  "Thence  sent  by  vessels  to  South  Carolina,  to  treat  with 
curtesy  the  Indians  at  Fort  London,  and  to  send  them  out  in 
scalping  parties  with  such  number  of  men  as  you  can  spare." 

I'ut  now  the  peaceable  growth  and  prosperity  of  the  vil- 
lage were  to  be  halted.  Dissatisfaction  with  the  government 
in  England  began  to  grow,  and  there  were  murmurings  of  dis- 
content and  resentment,  not  by  any  means  indulged  in  by  all 
the  citizens,  for  large  numbers  were  still  utterly  loyal  to  the 
1  Town,  and  those  who  opposed  its  policies  congregated  to  them- 
selves, meeting  in  secret  or  standing  in  little  groups  about  the 
streets  to  give  vent  to  their  feelings. 


The  Revolution  Gathers 

One  well-known  place  for  the  meeting  of  ''Revolutionists" 
was  the  Rising  Sun  tavern  still  standing  in  good  order,  at  that 
time  kept  by  "Mine  Host,"  George  Weedon.  This  famed  old 
Tavern  is  told  of  in  another  chapter.  It  is  almost  certain  that 
at  this  tavern  the  rough  draft  was  made  of  a  resolution  to  be 
later  passed  in  a  public  town  meeting,  which  was  tantamount  to 
a  declaration  of  independence,  and  which  was  passed  twenty- 
one  days  before  the  famous  Mecklenburg  declaration  and  more 
than  a  year  before  that  of  the  American  congress. 

These  resolutions  were  adopted  on  the  29th  day  of  April, 
1775,  amidst  the  greatest  public  excitement.  News  of  the 
battle  of  Lexington,  fought  on  the  20th  of  April,  and  of  the 
removal  by  Lord  Dunmore  of  twenty  barrels  of  powder  from 
the  public  magazine  at  Williamsburg  to  the  English  frigate 
"'Fowey,"  then  lying  near  Yorktown,  which  occurred  one  day 
after  the  battle  of  Lexington,  had  just  reached  Fredericksburg. 
Immediately  the  citizens  showed  their  indignation.  More  than 
six  hundred  men  from  the  town  and  the  surrounding  country 
armed  themselves  and  sent  a  courier  to  General  Washington, 
then  at  Williamsburg,  offering  their  services  in  defense  of  the 
Colonies.  Delegates  were  also  dispatched  to  Richmond  to 
ascertain  the  true  state  of  affairs,  and  to  find  out  at  what  point 
the  men  should  report.  The  men  stayed  under  arms  and  in 
readiness  to  move  at  short  notice  until  General  Washington 
transmitted  a  message,  advising  that  they  restrain  from  any 
hostilities  until  a  congress  could  be  called  to  decide  upon  a  gen- 
eral plan  of  defense.  This  advice  was  received  by  a  council 
of  more  than  a  hundred  men,  representing  fourteen  companies 
(the  number  under  arms  having  by  this  time  grown),  which 
decided  by  a  majority  of  one  to  disperse  for  the  present,  but 
to  keep  themselves  in  readiness  for  a  call.  Many  of  them  after- 
wards joined  the  armies  of  General  Washington. 

Material  preparations  for  the  conflict  that  everyone,  even 
the  Tories,  now  felt  was  certain,  were  made  by  the  establish- 
ment at  the  town  of  the  first  small  arms  manufactury  in 
America,  which  was  located  on  what  now  is  known  as  Gun- 
nery Green.     Colonel  Fielding  Lewis,  brother-in-law  of  Gen- 

23 


'The  Gunnery  Is  Built 

cral  Washington,  was  one  of  the  commissioners  in  charge  of 
the  gunnery  and  active  in  its  management. 

With  the  coming  of  the  Gunnery,  and  the  formation  of 
companies  of  troops,  the  peaceful  atmosphere  of  Fredericks- 
burg  quickly  changed  to  one  of  a  militaristic  aspect.  Recruits 
drilled  in  the  street,  the  manufacture  of  arms  was  rushed,  sup- 
plies were  received  and  stored,  couriers,  with  news  from  other 
parts  of  the  country,  dashed  in  to  acquaint  the  eager  towns- 
people with  events,  and  those  loyal  to  the  Colonies  went  bravely 
about  with  every  kind  of  war  preparation,  while  those  inclined 
to  Toryism  kept  quiet  and  to  themselves,  or  moved  away  with 
their  families,  hoping,  and  probably  succeeding  in  many  cases, 
in  reaching  England  before  the  whole  country  was  affected  by 
the  war,  in  which  the  part  played  by  Fredericksburg  and  its 
citizens  was  of  the  utmost  importance.  The  town  gave  to  the 
Revolution  an  unusually  large  proportion  of  troops  and  many 
of  the  great  leaders. 

During  the  Revolution,  although  Fredericksburg  men 
were  the  leaders  of  the  Army,  no  fighting  occurred  here  and  the 
period  was  not  one  of  danger  for  the  town,  but  was  one  of 
anxiety  for  the  inhabitants.  Tarleton  passed  close  to  this  city 
on  his  raid  towards  Charlottesville,  and  Lafayette  and  his  men 
built  the  road  still  known  as  "The  Marquis  Road,"  through  the 
Wilderness  toward  Orange. 

Recently  three  soldiers,  whose  uniform  buttons  testify 
they  were  Hessians,  were  dug  up  near  Spotsylvania  Court 
House.  A  prison  camp  existed  about  two  miles  from  here 
on  the  Plank  Road  from  which  Washington  recruited  some 
artisans  to  do  the  interior  decorating  in  the  home  of  his 
beloved  sister,  Betty,  at  Kenmore. 

Several  Regiments  went  from  Fredericksburg.  General 
William  Woodford  (see  sketch  of  life)  was  elected  Com- 
mander of  the  first.  Among  his  descendants  are  the  late 
Marion  Willis,  Mayor  Willis  and  Mr.  Benj.  Willis.  General 
Hugh  Mercer  was  chosen  Commander  of  the  third  regiment, 
and  James  Monroe,  of  Fredericksburg  (afterwards  president) 

24 


Regiments  Are  Recruited 

was  Lieut-Colonel,  while  Thomas  Marshall,  father  of  Chief 
Justice  Marshall,  was  Major.  The  other  Virginia  Regiment 
was  not  recruited  here.    It  was  commanded  by  Patrick  Henry. 

Although  it  furnished  two  of  the  first  three  Virginia  Regi- 
ments, and  half  of  America's  Generals,  as  well  as  the  Com- 
manding General,  Fredericksburg  was  not  a  war  center.  Its 
history  during  that  period  will  be  found  in  the  lives  of  the  men 
it  produced,  elsewhere  in  this  book. 

It  did  give  most  material  aid  by  furnishing  arms  from 
the  "Gunnery"  of  Col.  Fielding  Lewis,  and  was  generous  in 
its  financial  aid,  and  always  ready  for  attack. 


25 


After  the  Revolution 

In  the  days  of  its  glory,  the  Old  Tozvn  -ivasjamed  and  prosperous 

The  first  mention  of  Fredericksburg  in  the  annals  of  the 
new  Republic  is  an  act  of  the  legislature  in  1781,  incorporat- 
ing the  town  and  vesting  the  powers  of  its  government  in  the 
hands  of  a  mayor  and  commonality,  consisting  of  a  council  and 
board  of  aldermen.  Courts  were  established  and  provision 
made  for  future  elections  of  its  officials. 

The  first  mayor  was  Charles  Morti'mer,  and  the  Board  of 
Aldermen  consisted  of  William  Williams,  John  Sommerville, 
Charles  Dick,  Samuel  Roddy  and  John  Julien,  who,  together 
with  the  mayor,  were  also  justices  of  the  peace,  and  required 
to  hold  a  hustings  court  monthly.  John  Legg  was  appointed 
sergeant  of  the  court  and  corporation,  and  John  Richards  and 
James  Jarvis  constables.  The  town's  initial  commonwealth's 
attorney,  John  Minor,  is  said  to  have  been  the  first  man  to 
offer  in  any  legislative  body  of  the  country  a  bill  for  the  eman- 
cipation of  the  slaves. 

The  first  action  of  the  court  is  interesting,  especially  in 
these  times.  It  was  giving  license  to  five  persons  to  conduct 
taverns,  immediately  followed  by  an  act  to  regulate  them  by 
establishing  prices  for  alcoholic,  vinous  and  fermented  bever- 
ages. There  is  no  mention  of  opening  or  closing  hours, 
Sunday  selling,  selling  to  minors  or  any  of  the  later  and  stricter 
regulations,  and  the  prices  to  be  charged  are  in  terms  of 
pounds,  or  parts,  per  gallon.  The  American  bar  was  unknown 
then  and  probably  even  in  the  taverns  and  tap  rooms,  little 
liquor  was  sold  by  the  drink.  Some  of  the  prices  established 
translated  into  dollars,  were  West  Indian  rum,  per  gallon, 
$3.34:  brandy,  $1.67;  good  whiskey,  Si. 00;  good  beer,  -So. 67 
and  so  on. 

26 


The  Famed  "Peace  Ball" 

Having  taken  care  that  the  tavern  keepers  could  not 
charge  too  much  for  drink,  the  court  now  provided  that  they 
should  not  over  charge  for  food  served,  placing  the  score  for 
a  "single  diet"  at  twenty-five  cents,  a  most  reasonable  sum 
according  to  modern  standards. 

While  having  the  power  to  regulate,  the  court  was  not 
without  regulation  from  a  superior  source  as  the  articles  of 
incorporation  show  that  in  case  of  misconduct  on  the  part  of 
the  mayor  or  any  member  of  the  board,  the  others  would  have 
power  to  remove  him  after  the  charges  had  been  fully  proved, 
and  it  further  stipulated  that  should  any  person  elected  to 
office  fail  or  refuse  to  serve,  he  should  be  fined  according  to 
the  following  scale :  mayor,  fifty  pounds ;  recorder,  forty 
pounds;  alderman,  thirty  pounds;  councilman,  twenty-five 
pounds.  In  1782  an  amendment  was  passed  by  the  legislature, 
enlarging  the  jurisdiction  of  the  court  to  include  all  territory 
within  one  mile  of  the  town  limits. 

Fredericksburg  was  not  long  in  recovering  from  the 
effects  of  the  Revolution.  It  had  suffered  no  physical  damage, 
though  it  had  lost  a  great  deal  of  actual  and  potential  value 
in  the  deaths  of  citizens  who  gave  their  lives  for  the  cause. 
A  magnificent  Peace  Ball  was  held,  in  1784,  in  the  assembly 
room  over  the  old  City  Hall,  at  Main  Street  and  "Market 
Alley,"  which  was  attended  by  General  Washington,  General 
Lafayette,  Rochambeau,  Washington's  mother,  who  came  lean- 
ing on  his  arm  and  all  the  notables  and  fashionables  of  the 
country.  The  town  was  soon  again  a  thriving  hustling  center 
of  trade  and  business. 

New  enterprises  came  as  requirements  of  the  times  made 
themselves  felt.  In  1786  the  Virginia  Herald  made  its  appear- 
ance, the  first  newspaper  published  in  the  town,  and  about  the 
same  time  whipping  posts,  ducking  stools,  and  pillories  were 
established  to  keep  down  the  criminal  tendencies  of  the  unlaw- 
fully inclined.  In  T789  an  act  was  passed,  empowering  the 
trustees  of  the  Fredericksburg  Academy  to  raise  by  lottery 
$4,000  to  defray  the  expenses  of  erecting  a  building  on  the 

27 


Commercial  Development 

grounds  fur  the  accommodation  of  professors,  a  method  of 
raising  money  that  modern  morals  has  outlawed.  In  1795 
the  Episcopal  Charity  School  was  established  by  Archibald 
McPherson  one  of  the  splendid  men  of  the  town  and  in  1799 
the  town  experienced  its  first  serious  lire,  which  was  held  by 
some  to  have  been  the  work  of  an  incendiary  and  by  others 
as  due  to  a  wooden  chimney.  The  council  in  an  effort  to 
assuredly  exclude  all  danger  of  another  such  from  either 
source,  offered  a  reward  of  $500.  for  conviction  of  the  incen- 
diary, and  passed  an  ordinance  abolishing  wooden  chimneys, 
and  stove  pipes  sticking  through  windows  or  the  sides  of 
houses,  provided  the  buildings  were  not  fire  proof. 

From  1800  to  1850  Fredericksburg  was  the  principal 
depot  of  trade  and  commerce  for  all  that  region  between  the 
Rappahannock  river  and  the  counties  of  Orange,  Culpeper, 
Rapidan,  Madison  and  Fauquier  in  addition  to  the  contiguous 
territory  and  the  great  section  lying  between  the  town  and 
the  Chesapeake  bay.  Commerce  with  the  tipper  country,  how- 
ever, was  the  most  productive,  for  the  lower  country  people 
were  in  close  connection  with  the  rivers  and,  as  in  those  days 
ail  shipping  was  done  by  water  ways,  they  shipped  from 
wharves  along  the  Rappahannock  near  their  homes.  They 
received  much  of  their  goods  in  this  manner  and  were  not  so 
dependent  upon  the  town  as  the  upper  country  people  who 
were  forced  to  bring  their  products  to  Fredericksburg  by 
wagon  trains,  which  lumbered  slowly  down  with  their  burdens 
of  grain,  produce  and  tobacco,  and  having  unloaded  and  tar- 
ried awhile,  lumbered  back  even  more  slowly,  loaded  with 
groceries,  wines,  liquors,  household  stores,  plantation  sup- 
plies, dry  goods  and  merchandise  for  the  country  stores. 

These  wagons  were  of  huge  dimensions,  "their  curving 
bodies  being  before  and  behind  at  least  twelve  feet  from  the 
ground"  according  to  one  writer.  They  had  canvas  covers 
and  were  drawn  by  four  horses  always,  sometimes  six  and 
eight,  carrying  jangling  bells  upon  their  collars.  As  many  as 
two   hundred   of   them  were   often   on   the    streets   or   in    the 


Fires  Sweep  the  Tozvn 

wagon  yards  of  Fredericksburg  at  one  time,  making  pros- 
perity for  the  energetic  merchants  of  that  distant  day,  and 
bringing  business  for  the  many  vessels,  some  of  them  large 
three  masted  schooners,  which  came  from  all  parts  of  the 
globe  to  anchor  at  the  wharves. 

At  about  this  time  Fredericksburg  received  two  serious 
blows  that  greatly  retarded  its  progress'  and  prosperity.  The 
first  was  in  1808,  when  nearly  half  the  town  was  destroyed 
by  a  fire  which  broke  out  at  the  corner  of  Princess  Anne  and 
Lewis  streets,  where  the  Shepherd  residence  now  stands,  and 
fanned  by  a  high  wind  quickly  roared  its  way  through  the 
inflammable  houses,  such  as  most  of  the  residences  then  were, 
until  the  town  was  half  in  ashes.  At  the  outbreak  of  the  fire 
most  of  the  citizens  were  attending  the  races  at  "Willis  Field," 
just  below  the  town,  and  before  they  could  get  back  it  had 
gained  such  headway  that  their  efforts  to  check  it  were  inef- 
fectual. It  is  said  the  fire  was  caused  by  the  overturning  of 
a  candle  in  the  kitchen  of  the  Stannard  home,  occupying  the 
present  site  of  the  Shepherd  residence,  where  refreshments 
werq  being  prepared  for  the  funeral  of  Mr.  Stannard,  and 
that  the  remains  were  gotten  out  of  the  house  only  with  great 
difficulty  on  the  part  of  the  mourners.  In  those  days  funerals 
were  accompanied  by  feasts,  at  which  cake  in  sombre  wrap- 
pings and  wine  in  glasses  with  long  black  ribbons  tied  to  the 
stems,  were  served. 

Much  of  the  brick  construction  on  the  upper  business 
section  of  Main  street,  and  a  number  of  residences  known  as 
Colonial,  are  results  of  that  fire,  but  deserve  to  be  called  Colo- 
nial as  that  period,  architectually  speaking,  extended  until 
about  the  year  1812.  The  Shepherd  residence,  of  course,  was 
built  following  the  fire;  the  old  Doswell  home,  now  occupied 
by  Mr.  A.  W.  Rowe,  probably  was  erected  afterwards  and 
the  old  Marye  home,  now  owned  by  Mr.  A.  L.  Jenkins,  has  a 
corner  stone  bearing  the  date  18 12,  the  residence  formerly 
occupying  that  site  having  been  burned.  However,  most  of 
the  older  residences  in  Fredericksburg  antedate  the  fire,  and 
are  of  an  earlier  Colonial  period. 

29 


During  The  War  of  1812 

Another  blow  was  the  War  of  1S12,  and  though,  as  in 
the  case  of  the  Revolution,  the  citv  did  not  suffer  actual  phy- 
sical damage,  its  business  and  trade  were  interrupted  and 
severely  decreased,  if  not  totally  stopped,  due  to  the  English 
dominance  of  the  seas  and  (hiring  the  course  of  that  conflict, 
the  commercial  life  must  have  been  slow  and  stagnant. 

Fredericksburg  itself  was  for  a  time  threatened  when 
the  English  admiral,  Cockburn,  made  a  raid  up  the  Rappa- 
hannock. Many  thought  his  objective  was  Fredericksburg 
and  General  William  Madison,  brother  of  the  President,  sum- 
moned a  small  force  which  took  up  positions  of  defense,  from 
which  to  repel  the  raider,  but  he  never  got  up  the  river  as  far 
as  the  city,  turning  when  much  lower  down  and  putting  back 
to  sea  for  a  cause  which  history  has  not  assigned.  During 
this  war,  as  had  been  the  case  in  the  Revolution,  and  was  to 
be  in  the  Civil  war  to  come,  the  Mercer  home,  now  occupied 
by  Councilman  George  W.  Fleflin,  which  stands  on  an  emi- 
nence on  lower  Main  street  commanding  a  splendid  view  of 
the  river,  was  used  as  a  post  from  which  to  watch  for  the 
approach  of  enemy  ships,  a  use  that  has  given  it  the  name  of 
"The  Sentry  Box." 

Following  the  War  of  181 2,  Fredericksburg's  trade 
revived  and  increased,  and  the  city  settled  down  to  a  full 
enjoyment  of  that  remarkably  cultural  era  —  the  only  classical 
civilization  America  has  ever  known  —  which  lasted  until  the 
Civil  war  and  which  has  been  made  famous  in  song  and  story 
and  the  history  of  the  old  South.  The  families  of  the  early 
settlers  had  by  now  become  wealthy:  the  plantation  masters 
owned  hundreds  of  slaves,  farmed  thousands  of  acres  and  lived 
in  their  handsome  old  Colonial  mansions  in  the  most  mag- 
nificent style  the  times  could  afford.  Surrounded  by  many 
servants  and  all  the  comforts  known  to  the  day,  they  enter- 
tained lavishly,  kept  splendidly  stocked  wine  cellars,  boasted 
of  private  race  courses  and  keen  thoroughbred  hunters  and 
rncers,  and.  as  the  business  of  the  plantations  was  largely  in 
the  hands  of  overseers,  they  were  gentlemen  of  splendid 
leisure  with  an  abundance  of  time  opportunity  and  means  to 

30 


Care-Free  Era  of  Gayety 

devote  to  sports,  politics  and  literature.  Most  of  them  were 
educated  abroad  and  were  learned  in  the  classics,  clever  and 
entertaining  conversationalists,  beautiful  riders,  excellent 
shots,  and  when  not  engaged  in  social  or  literary  pursuits  that 
kept  them  indoors,  enjoyed  the  sports  of  the  field,  hunting  to 
the  hounds,  gunning  for  quail,  deer,  bear,  wild  turkey  or  duck, 
or  fishing  in  the  abundantly  supplied  streams  tributary  to  the 
Potomac  and  Rappahannock  rivers.  Hard  drinking  was  not 
unusual  among  them,  but  they  were  men  of  the  highest  sense 
of  honor  and  principle,  and  were  always  true  to  an  obligation. 

While  the  townspeople  did  not  enjoy  life  quite  so  lavishly 
as  their  plantation  neighbors,  they  were  not  far  behind ;  enter- 
taining frequently  and  hospitably  and  mingling  freely  with  the 
people  from  the  country. 

But  though  it  was  a  gay  and  carefree  day,  the  times  were 
not  without  their  troubles.  In  1822  the  town  was  again  vis- 
ited by  fire,  this  time  originating  at  the  site  of  the  present 
Brent's  store,  at  Main  and  George  streets,  destroying  the  entire 
business  block  encompassed  between  Main  and  Princess  Anne 
and  George  and  Hanover  streets.  Recovery  from  this  fire 
was  rapid.  The  merchants  were  financially  substantial  and 
quickly  rebuilt  the  burned  area. 

As  early  as  1822,  Fredericksburg  was  an  important  postal 
point,  the  mail  for  five  states  being  assorted  and  distributed  in 
the  city  and  sent  thence  to  its  final  destination.  The  conduct 
of  Postmaster  General  Meigs  in  regard  to  increasing  the  com- 
pensation of  carriers  on  the  Fredericksburg  route  without 
authorization  from  Congress,  was  the  subject  of  an  investiga- 
tion by  that  body,  but  he  was  exonerated  when  it  was  explained 
that  the  increase  was  necessary  because  the  mail  had  become 
so  heavy  that  carriers1  were  no  longer  able  to  handle  it  on 
horse  back,  being  compelled  to  use  surries,  an  added  expense 
to  them  which  justified  the  additional  pay. 

James  Monroe,  a  former  resident,  lawyer  and  council- 
man of  Fredericksburg,  was  at  that  time  President  of  the 
United  States,  and  though  the  town  doubtless  was  a  naturally 

3i 


The  Tozi'n  Grozvs  Richer 

important  postal  distribution,  it  may  have  been  that  the  Presi- 
dent's influence  had  some  bearing  on  the  selection  of  the  place 
which  had  given  him  his  political  start. 

For  the  next  decade,  the  trade  and  commercial  life  of  the 
town  increased.  The  merchants  and  manufacturers  —  by  this 
time  several  large  industries  of  this  character  being  in  opera- 
tion —  were  busy  and  prosperous  and  had  begun  to  grow  either 
wealthy,  measured  in  the  standards  of  the  time,  or  were  in 
very  comfortable  circumstances,  while  the  citizenry,  generally, 
was  prosperous  and  free  from  want.  The  town  was  com- 
pactly built,  many  of  its  structures  now  being  of  brick,  and 
was  regularly  laid  out.  The  public  buildings  consisted  of  a 
courthouse,  market  house,  clerks  office,  the  Episcopal  Orphan 
Asylum,  the  Episcopal,  Presbyterian,  Methodist,  Baptist  and 
Reform  Baptist  Church.  It  had  two  banks,  one  female  and 
one  male  academy  of  the  higher  class;  a  water  system  supplied 
through  pipes  from  Poplar  Spring.  And  the  upper  river 
canal  was  being  built,  a  public  enterprise  from  which  great 
results  were  expected  and  which  was  to  extend  about  forty 
miles  up  the  Rappahannock.  Gold  was  being  mined  in  con- 
siderable quantities  in  upper  Spotsylvania  and  lower  Culpeper 
counties  and  brought  to  Fredericksburg  in  exchange  for  goods, 
and  a  generally  thriving  trade  was  being  done,  chiefly  in  grain, 
bacon,  tobacco  and  other  farm  products  for  export.  One  writer 
has  computed  the  city's  annual  exports  at  that  time  as  aver- 
aging four  million  dollars,  and  Government  statistics  show 
that  there  were  in?  the  town  in  1840,  seventy -three  stores,  two 
tanneries,  one  grist  mill,  two  printing  plants,  four  semi-weekly 
newspapers,  five  academies  with  256  students,  and  seven 
schools  with  165  scholars.  The  population  in  that  year  was 
3,974.  Ten  years  previous  it  had  been  3.3°8<  divided  as  fol- 
lows:  whites,  1,797:  slaves,  1,124;  free  blacks,  387. 

From  1840  until  the  middle  fifties,  prosperity  was  con- 
tinued. The  canal  was  completed  and  had  brought  about  an 
increased  business  at  a  lower  cost.  A  railroad  was  in  opera- 
tion from  Richmond  through  Fredericksburg  to  Aquia  Creek, 
and  steamboats  had  to  some  extent  taken  the  place  of  sailing 

32 


The  City  Limits  Are  Set 

vessels  as  a  means  of  water  transportation,  meaning  quicker 
trips  with  greater  burdens.  In  185 1  the  legislature  passed 
an  act  empowering  the  town  to  extend  its  limits,  which  was 
done  according  to  a  survey  made  by  William  Slaughter,  and 
though  that  was  more  than  seventy  years  ago,  and  though 
the  population  has  since  more  than  doubled,  overflowing  the 
limits  and  encroaching  on  the  adjoining  county,  the  limits  have 
not  again  been  enlarged. 

In  1855  Fredericksburg's  trade  had  ceased  to  grow  at  a 
rate  equal  to  its  average  yearly  increase  for  the  previous  twenty 
years,  a  condition  for  which  the  business  men  of  that  day 
were  not  altogether  responsible,  but  which  rather  was  brought 
about  by  the  new  commercial  era  the  country  and  world  was 
just  entering  —  the  era  of  railroad  transportation,  which 
quickly  and  cheaply,  in  comparison  to*  past  charges,  carried 
the  staples  of  the  farm  to  the  ports  of  the  sea  where  waiting 
vessels  stood  ready  to  spread  their  sable  sails  on  voyages  to 
foreign  markets.  This  era  created  the  importance  of  the  sea- 
port and  spelled  the  doom,  as  important  shipping  points,  of 
the  tidewater  cities  —  those  which  had  been  located  at  the 
jx>int  where  mountain  torrent  and  still  water  meet  in  order  to 
get  both  the  advantage  of  power  production  and  trade  routes. 

It  is  true  that  the  business  men  of  the  city  made  the  serious 
mistake  about  this  period  of  building  a  plank  road  into  one 
portion  of  the  upper  country  from  which  they  derived  much 
trade,  instead  of  building  a  railroad,  for  just  a  little  later 
transportation  by  wagon  train  for  export  purposes  had  nearly 
entirely  given  away  to  transportation  by  rail,  and  Fredericks- 
burg was  utterly  without  such  connection  with  its  greatest 
field  of  trade,  which  soon  was  largely  converted  into  other 
channels  by  the  railroads  now  beginning  to  practically  sur- 
round the  town  at  a  distance  of  approximately  forty  miles  to 
the  west.  The  single  railroad  passing  through  Fredericksburg 
had  no  coast  terminal.  Throughout  its  short  length  it  paral- 
leled the  coast,  offering  no  means  of  shipping  for  export, 
which  comprised  most  of  the  business  of  the  day.  The  planta- 
tion owners  of  the  upper  country  who  had  dealt  nearly  entirely 

33 


The   War  Ends  Prosperity 

in  Fredericksburg,  now  found  it  cheaper  to  haul  to  the  rail- 
road passing  through  their  country  and  soon  Fredericksburg 
was  belted  by  little  towns  to  the  west.  When  later  the  P.  F. 
&  P.  R.  R.  was  built  to  Orange,  it  did  not  save  the  situation 
and  except  for  lumber  and  ties,  a  trade  it  still  largely  enjoys, 
it  has  never  hauled  much  to  Fredericksburg  for  export,  though 
it  did  help  the  city  considerably  in  the  matter  of  retail  business. 

Trade,  however,  had  not  ceased  entirely  to  grow,  nor  the 
town  to  increase.  In  i860  its  population  was  ne?rly  5,000 
persons,  its  business  men  still  were  active  and  prosperous  and, 
but  for  the  Civil  war  which  was  to  come,  they  doubtless  would 
have  found  a  way  out  of  the  commercial  difficulty  confronting 
them  and  a  different  history  of  the  town  from  that  time  for- 
ward might  have  been  written. 

But  over  the  course  of  a  few  years  preceding  this  date, 
the  community  was  troubled  and  torn  by  political  strife  and 
moral  dissention.  Black  and  ominous  on  the  horizon  of  men's 
thoughts  loomed  the  slave  question,  perplexing  the  country's 
leaders  and  giving  threats  of  the  red  carnage  that  was  to 
follow.  A  carnage  that  cost  millions  in  men  and  money, 
caused  unreckoned  anguish  and  suffering,  and  retarded  the 
growth  of  the  South  to  such  an  extent  that  at  the  end  of  the 
following  fifty  years  it  had  only  just  begun  to  emerge  from 
the  black  shadow  cast  over  it  by  the  war. 

By  the  end  of  the  fifty's,  trade  had  almost  ceased,  a  spirit 
of  patriotism  for  the  Southland  superseded  that  of  commer- 
cial enterprise,  the  quietness  of  the  soft  old  Colonial  town 
was  broken  by  wild  public  meetings;  soon  the  call  of  a  bugle 
floated  softly  across  the  -till  air  and  the'  heavy  monotonous 
tread  of  feet  sounded  against  the  ground  in  unison  to  the 
beating  of  drums,  and  though  the  citizens  had  been  loyal  to 
the  Union,  sending  by  nearly  a  two-thirds  majority  a  Union 
man  to  the  State  convention,  they  made  ready  for  the  inevi- 
table conflict,  and  when  the  flame  of  war  burst  on  the  country 
like  a  flaring  torch,  they  threw  in  their  lots  with  the  land  of 
their   nativity  and   bravely    shouldering  their   arms,   marched 

34 


A  Town  in  "No  Man's  Land3 


away  from  their  homes  to  a  fate  that  would  bring  them  death 
or  sorrow,  and  reduce  their  land  to  a  shambles.  The  story  of 
the  Civil  war  as  it  effected  this  town  is  told  in  other  chapters 
which  follow  this. 

For  many  years  after  the  Civil  war,  Fredericksburg's 
connection  with  the  great  tragedy  was  told  in  the  lines  of 
patient  suffering  that  webbed  the  faces  of  the  older  generation. 
It  was  a  town  of  sombre,  black  figures  —  the  widows  and 
daughters  of  soldiers  —  gentle  creatures  who  moved  about  in 
quiet  dignity,  bravely  concealing  the  anguish  hidden  in  their 
hearts,  and  smilingly  making  the  best  of  such  disordered  con- 
ditions and  distressing  circumstances  as  before  they  had  never 
known.  It  was  a  town  filled  with  broken,  crushed  men,  ill 
fitted  for  the  harsher  demands  of  their  new  lives;  men  once 
rich  but  now  suddenly  tossed  from  the  foundations  that  always 
had  sustained  them,  who  found  themselves  aliens  in  an 
unknown  and  unfriendly  world. 

Blackened,  scarred  ruins  of  what  once  had  been  magnifi- 
cent homes  remained  mute,  grim  evidences  of  the  ghastly 
horror  and  the  quaint  old  town  was  stunned  and  still,  a  tragic 
wreck  of  its  one  time  beauty.  But  as  best  it  could  it  gathered 
up  the  tangled  threads  of  its  existence  and  for  the  next  decade 
struggled  dumbly  and  blindly  against  the  terrible  disadvantages 
imposed  upon  it  by  the  ruthlessness  of  war. 

When  the  war  came  with  Spain,  it  showed  that  the  hurt 
of  the  Civil  strife  was  gone,  when  its  young  men  marched 
proudly  through  the  streets  to  take  their  parts  in  the  crisis ; 
sent  on  their  missions  of  patriotism  with  the  feeble  but  sincere 
cheers  of  aged  Confederate  veterans  ringing  in  their  ears. 

With  the  beginnings  of  the  20th  century,  Fredericksburg 
gave  vi sable  evidence  of  its  recovery  from  the  wounds  of  war. 
Its  business  men  had  accumulated  sufficient  capital  to  revive 
trade,  at  least  partially,  on  its  past  scale ;  additional  industries 
were  started,  new  homes  and  buildings  sprang  up  and  there 
was  the  beginning  of  a  general  and  steady  improvement. 

35 


A   Change  in   Government 

In  1909  a  group  of  progressive  citizens,  among  whom 
one  of  the  most  earnest  was  the  late  Henry  Warden,  a  man  of 
immense  usefulness,  realized  their  ambition  and  the  consum- 
mation of  an  aim  for  which  they  had  fought  for  years,  when 
the  old  form,  of  councilmanic  government  was  abolished  in 
favor  of  the  City  Manager  form,  Fredericksburg  being  one 
of  the  first  small  cities  in  the  country  to  adopt  it.  Since  its 
inauguration,  the  city  has  prospered  and  improved.  Well  laid 
granolithic  sidewalks  are  placed  throughout  its  business  and 
residential  sections,  splendid  hard  gravel  streets,  topped  with 
smooth  asphalt  binding,  have  replaced  the  old  mud  roadways, 
the  water  system  has  been  enlarged  and  improved,  fire  pro- 
tection increased  and  other  municipal  improvements  made  that 
have  taken  the  town  out  of  the  class  of  sleepy  provincial  ham- 
lets and  made  of  it  a  modern  little  city.  New  hotels  of  the 
finest  type,  business  enterprises  and  industrial  concerns  have 
come  to  give  it  new  life  and  color,  but  with  all  this  it  still 
retains  much  that  is  sweet  and  old  and  is  filled  with  the  charm 
and  elegance  of  the  past. 

Though  it  has  just  celebrated  its  two  hundred  and  fiftieth 
birthday,  the  anniversary  of  a  time  when  America  was  only 
beginning  to  give  promise  of  its  brilliant  future,  a  time  when 
the  country  was  young  and  weak,  but  when  manhood  wras 
strong  and  courage  held  high  the  torch  of  hope,  Fredericks- 
burg looks  forward  to  the  future  with  eager  longing,  con- 
fident that  in  the  mirror  of  its  past  is  the  story  of  the  time 
to  come. 


36 


War's  Worst  Horrors 

Skilled  by  181  guns  for  hours,  the  to-ivrt  becomes  a  crumbled  ruin 

Fredericksburg  is  the  point  through  which  the  railway 
and  the  roads  to  Richmond  pass,  and  is  half  way  between 
Washington  and  the  Southern  city.  During  the  Civil  war 
the  possession  of  the  town  was  an  advantage  not  to  be  despised, 
and  so  from  the  beginning  the  two  great  armies  of  the  North 
and  South  were  contenders  for  the  town. 

The  first  attempt  toward  Fredericksburg  was  made  June 
i,  t86i,  when  Federal  gunboats  and  a  small  cavalry  force 
were  defeated,  in  an  attempt  to  land  troops  at  Aquia  Creek,  by 
General  Daniel  Ruggles,  C.  S.  A.,  in  command  of  the  Depart- 
ment of  Fredericksburg.  This  was  the  first  skirmish  of  the 
war,  in  Virginia,  and  occurred  nine  days  before  "Big  Bethel" 
and  seven  weeks  after  Virginia  seceded. 

On  the  nineteenth  of  April,  1862,  the  Stafford  hills  were 
taken  by  the  Federals,  and  on  April  27th  General  Marsena  R. 
Patrick  marched  troops  into  the  town  and  placed  it  under 
military  rule.  General  Patrick  treated  the  citizens  with  con- 
sideration and  under  his  rule  there  was  but  little  complaint 
of  oppression.  He  was,  in  fact,  generally  admired  for  his  fair 
treatment  of  the  populace. 

But  with  the  coming  of  the  conceited  and  inhuman  Gen- 
eral Pope,  who  followed  McClellan  in  command  of  the  Federal 
army,  all  that  was  changed.  From  that  time  forward  this  quiet 
old  city  between  the  hills,  with  its  splendid  homes,  its  old 
silver  and  china  and  tapistry  and  paintings,  its  great  trees  and 
broad  streets,  was  to  know  every  crueltv,  horror,  and  depreda- 
tion of  Avar. 

General  Pope,  driven  back  by  the  Confederates,  moved 
through  Fauquier  and  Culpeper  counties  to  Fredericksburg, 
and   immediately  upon   securing   the  town,    his   subordinates 

17 


In  the  Enemy's  Hands 

scoured  the  city  and  arrested  nineteen  of  the  most  prominent 
men,  alleging  no  crime  but  stating  frankly  that  it  was  done  in 
reprisal  for  the  arrest  by  the  Confederates  of  Major  Charles 
Williams  of  Fredericksburg,  who  was  held  in  Richmond  to 
prevent  him  from  aiding  the  enemy.  These  men  were  sent 
to  the  old  Capital  Prison  at  Washington,  where  they  were 
held  from  early  in  August  to  late  September  in  1862,  and 
were  then  released  in  exchange  for  Major  Williams  and  others. 
There  were  Rev.  W.  F.  Broaddus,,  D.  D.>  James  McGuire, 
Charles  Wei  ford,  Thomas  F.  Knox,  Beverly  T.  Gill,  James  H. 
Bradley,  Thomas  B.  Barton,  Benjamin  Temple,  Lewis  Wrenn, 
Michael  Ames,  John  Coakley,  John  H.  Roberts,  John  J.  Berrey, 
Dr.  James  Cooke,  John  F.  Scott,  Montgomery  Slaughter, 
(Mayor),  George  H.  C.  Rowe,  Wm.  H.  Norton,  Abraham 
Cox. 

Fredericksburg  was  evacuated  in  August,  1862,  when  the 
Northern  soldiers  were  drawn  up  in  line  and  marched  out  of 
town.  A  great  burden  was  lifted  from  the  community.  Heavy 
explosions  marked  the  blowing  up  of  the  two  bridges.  On 
September  4th.  an  advance  guard  of  Confederate  cavalry  rode 
into  the  town  amid  shouts  of  welcome. 

The  relief  was  but  for  a  short  period.  On  November 
10th,  Captain  Dalgren's  (Federal)  dragoons  crossed  the  river 
above  Falmouth  and  clattered  down  Main  street  audi  met  a 
small  force  of  Confederates  under  Col.  Critcher,  who  drove 
them  back.  But  General  Burnside's  whole  army  was  follow- 
ing and  in  a  few  days  held  the  Stafford  hills. 

Fredericksburg  and  the  country  immediately  about  it  was 
fought  over,  marched  over,  shelled  and  ravaged  and  desolated. 
The  town  became  a  dreary  military  outpost  of  battered,  falling 
walls  and  charred  timbers,  of  soldiers,  now  in  gray,  now  in 
blue.  Under  its  streets  and  in  yards  hundreds  of  dead  were 
buried  to  be  now  and  again,  in  after  years,  unearthed.  No 
other  American  city  ever  suffered  as  did  this  formerly  pros- 
perous town. 

The  situation,  from  a  military  standpoint,  was  this: 
Southeastward  of  the  city  the  Rappahannock  broadens,  so  that 

38 


Threats  of  Bombardment 

it  is  not  easily  bridged,  and  if  an  army  crossed,  it  still  would 
have  to  get  to  Richmond.  Northwest  (and  much  nearer 
west  than  north)  of  the  city,  the  Rappahannock  is  fordable, 
but  its  course  is  azvay  from  Richmond,  and  the  roads  to  Rich- 
mond again  lead  back  toward  the  rear  of  Fredericksburg. 

There  were,  therefore,  but  two  feasible  plans  for  the 
North  to  accomplish  its  "on  to  Richmond"  purpose.  One  was 
to  take  Fredericksburg  and  with  it  the  roads  and  railway  to 
Richmond;  Burnside  tried  this.  The  other,  to  cross  the  river 
just  above,  and  get  in  the  rear  of  Fredericksburg,  thus  get- 
ing  the  roads  and  railways  to  Richmond ;  Hooker  and  Grant 
tried  this. 

On  November  20th,  General  Sumner  peremptorily  de- 
manded the  surrender  of  the  town,  under  threat  of  immediate 
bombardment,  but  on  receiving  a  request  from  Mayor 
Slaughter,  he  consented  to  extend  the  time  twenty-four  hours 
and  sent  General  Patrick  across  the  river  with  a  message,  as 
follows : 

"Gentlemen :  Under  cover  of  the  houses  of  your  town, 
shots  have  been  fired  upon  the  troops  of  my  command. 
Your  mills  and  factories  are  furnishing  provisions  and 
materials  for  clothing  for  armed  bodies  in  rebellion 
against  the  authority  of  the  Government  of  the  United 
States.  Your  railroads  and  other  means  of  transporta- 
tion are  removing  supplies  to  the  depot  of  such  troops. 
This  condition  of  things  must  terminate ;  and  by  direc- 
tion of  Major-General  Burnside,  commanding  this  army, 
I  accordingly  demand  the  surrender  of  this  city  into  my 
hands,  as  a  representative  of  the  Government  of  the 
United  States,  at  or  before  five  o'clock  this  afternoon  (five 
o'clock  P.  M.  to-day).  Failing  an  affirmative  reply  to 
this  demand  by  the  time  indicated,  sixteen  hours  will  be 
permitted  to  elapse  for  the  removal  from  the  city  of 
women  and  children,  the  sick,  wounded,  and  aged;  which 
period  having  elapsed,  I  shall  proceed  to  shell  the  town. 

39 


The  Citizens  Driven  Out 

"Upon  obtaining  possession  of  the  town,  every  neces- 
sary means  will  be  taken  to  preserve  order  and  to  secure 
the  protective  operation  of  the  laws  and  policy  of  the 
United  States  Government." 

While  General  Patrick  waited  from  10:00  A.  M.  until 
7:00  P.  M.  (November  21)  in  a  log-  house  at  French  John's 
Wharf,  the  note  was  passed  through  the  hands  of  a  civic  com- 
mittee who  had  previously  met  General  Lee  at  "Snowden," 
(now  the  beautiful  home  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  F.  C.  Baldwin)  on 
which  were:  Mayor  Slaughter,  William  A.  Little  and  Douglas 
H.  Gordon.  A  note  from  General  Lee  was  then  transmitted 
to  the  town  officials  by  General  J.  E.  B.  Stuart.  This  Mayor 
Slaughter,  Dr.  Wm.  S.  Scott  and  Samuel  Harrison  delivered 
late  in  the  afternoon  to  General  Patrick.  General  Lee  simplv 
said  the  town  was  non-combatant;  that  he  would  not  occupy  it, 
nor  would  he  allow  any  one  else  to  occupy  it. 

Advised  by  General  Lee,  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  now 
began  to  refugee  to  the  rear.  They  went  in  the  dark,  int  a 
snow  storm,  afoot,  in  vehicles  and  some  in  a  railway  train, 
upon  which  the  Northern  guns  opened  heavy  fire.  They  slept 
in  barns,  cabins  and  the  homes  of  country  people,  and  left 
behind  their  silverware  and  fine  old  china,  their  paintings  and 
portraits  and  every  kind  of  property,  all  of  which  was  doomed 
to  destruction. 

But  the  town  was  not  shelled  and  a  few  at  a  time  many 
of  the  old  men  and  the  women,  the  boys  and  girls,  crept  back 
from  impossible  shelters  in  the  country  to  their  limnes  in  the 
town. 

Then,  twenty-two  days  later,  at  dawn  of  December  11th, 
at  a  signal  from  the  "Long  Tom"  on  Scott's  Hill,  at  Falmouth. 
Burnside  opened  on  the  town,  now  half  full  of  residents,  with 
one  hundred  and  eighty-one  guns.  The  guns  were  placed 
along  Stafford  Heights  from  the  Washington  Farm  to  Fal- 
mouth, and  the  whole  fire  was  concentrated  on  the  town. 
where  walls  toppled,  fires  sprang  up  and  chaos  reigned. 

40 


The  Story  of  the  Shelling 

Frequently  the  Union  gunners  fired  a  hundred  guns  a 
minute,  round  shot,  case  shot  and  shell.  The  quick  puffs  of 
smoke,  touched  in  the  center  with  flame,  ran  incessantly  along 
the  hills  and  a  vast  thunder  echoed  thirty  miles  away.  Soon 
the  town  was  under  a  pall  of  smoke,  through  which  lifted 
the  white  spires  of  the  churches. 

"The  scenes  following  the  bombardment,''  says  John 
Esten  Cooke,  in  ''Jackson,"  "were  cruel.  Men,  women  and 
children  were  driven  from  town.  Hundreds  of  ladies  and  chil- 
dren were  seen  wandering  homeless  over  the  frozen  highways, 
with  bare  feet  and  thin  clothing.  Delicately  nurtured  girls 
walked  hurriedly  over  the  various  roads,  seeking  some  friendly 
roof  to  cover  them." 

The  following  article  by  one  who,  as  a  little  girl,  was  in 
Fredericksburg  on  the  day  of  the  bombardment,  catches  a 
glimpse  of  it  in  a  personal  way  that  is  more  convincing  than 
pages  of  description. 

The  Shelling  of  Fredericksburg 

Recollections  of  Mrs  Frances  Bernard  Goolrick  (Mrs. 
John  T.  Goolrick)  who  was  a  little  girl  at  that  time. 

During  the  stormy  winter  of  1862,  my  mother,  a  widow 
with  three  little  children,  was  still  in  her  native  place,  Freder- 
icksburg, Virginia.  Many  of  the  inhabitants  had  long  since 
left  for  Richmond  and  other  points  farther  south,  for  the 
town  lying  just  between  the  hostile  armies  was  the  constant 
scene  of  raids  and  skirmishes,  and  no  one  knew  at  what  instant 
everything  might  be  swept  away  from  them.  My  mother, 
separated  from  her  relatives  by  the  fortunes  of  war,  decided 
that  it  would  be  best  for  her  to  remain  where  she  was  and 
thus  probably  save  the  household  effects  she  had  gathered 
around  her.  The  strongest  arguments  had  been  used  by 
friends  in  town  and  relatives  at  a  distance  to  induce  her  to 
leave  for  a  place  of  more  safety,  but  so  far  without  avail,  and 

4i 


Gu?is  Open  On  The  Town 

though  we  were  often  alarmed  by  raids  into  town,  as  yet  we 
had  sustained  no  injuries  of  any  description.  In  the  fall  the 
Federal  army,  under  General  Burnside,  was  on  the  Stafford 
hills  just  across  the  river,  and  it  was  constantly  rumored  that 
the  town  would  be  bombarded ;  but  lulled  to  an  insecure  rest 
by  many  false  alarms,  the  people  had  but  little  faith  in  these 
rumors. 

On  the  nth  of  December,  one  of  the  most  cruel  and 
heartless  acts  of  the  war  was  to  be  perpetrated ,  the  town 
of  Fredericksburg  was  bombarded,  the  roar  of  guns  be- 
ginning at  daybreak,  with  no  one  in  it  but  old  or  invalid 
men  and  helpless  women  and  children.  As  quick  as  thought, 
we  were  up  and  dressed,  and  my  aunt  being  very  rapid  in  her 
movements,  was  the  first  to  reach  the  cellar.  My  mother  had 
long  since  had  some  chairs  and  other  pieces  of  furniture  placed 
there  in  case  of  an  emergency.  I  being  the  first  child  dressed, 
ran  out  into  the  yard,  and  as'  I  turned  towards  the  cellar  steps 
I  beheld,  it  seemed  to  me,  the  most  brilliant  light  that  I  had 
ever  seen ;  as  I  looked,  my  aunt  reached  out  her  arms  and 
pulled  me,  quivering  with  terror,  into  the  cellar.  A  shell  had 
exploded  at  the  back  of  the  garden,  in  reality  at  some  distance, 
but  to  me  it  was  as  if  it  had  been  at  my  very  feet.  The  family 
soon  assembled,  including  the  servants ;  we  had  also  additions 
in  the  way  of  two  gentlemen  from  Stafford,  Mr.  B.  and  Mr. 
G.,  who  had  been  detained  in  town,  and  a  Lieutenant  Eustace, 
of  Braxton's  battery,  who  was  returning  from  a  visit  to  his 
home.  Also  a  colored  family,  Uncle  Charles  and  Aunt  Judy, 
with  a  small  boy  named  Douglas  and  two  or  three  other  chil- 
dren. The  couple  had  been  left  in  charge  of  their  mistress' 
home  (she  being  out  of  town),  and  with  no  cellar  to  their 
house  they  were  fain  to  come  into  ours. 

And  now  the  work  of  destruction  began,  and  for  long 
hours  the  only  sounds  that  greeted  our  ears  were  the  whizzing 
and  moaning  of  the  shells  and  the  crash  of  falling  bricks  and 
timber.     My  mother  and  we  three  children  were  seated  on  a 

42 


Hiding   From   The  Shells 

low  bed  with  Ca'line,  a  very  small  darkey,  huddled  as  close 
to  us  children  as  she  could  get,  trying  to  keep  warm.  Mr  B. 
and  Mr.  G.  occupied  positions  of  honor  on  each  side  of  the 
large  old-fashioned  fire-place,  while  my  aunt  was  cowering 
inside,  and  everv  time  a  ball  would  roll  through  the  house  or 
a  shell  explode,  she  would  draw  herself  up  and  moan  and 
shiver.  Lieutenant  Eustace  was  a  great  comfort  to  my  mother, 
and  having  some  one  to  rely  on  enabled  her  to  keep  her  courage 
up  during  the  terrible  ordeal  of  the  cannonading.  Although 
my  brother,  sister  and  myself  were  all  frightened,  we  could 
not  help  laughing  at  the  little  darkey  children  who  were  posi- 
tively stricken  dumb  with  terror,  old  Aunt  Judy  keeping  them 
close  to  her  side  and  giving  them  severe  cuffs  and  bangs  if 
they  moved  so  much  as  a  finger. 

My  aunt,  as  well  as  the  rest  of  us,  now  began  to  feel  the 
pangs  of  hunger,  and  Aunt  B.  ordered  the  cook  in  the  most 
positive  manner  to  go  up  to  the  kitchen  and  make  some  coffee, 
telling  her  that  she  knew  she  was  afraid  and  we  would  all  be 
satisfied  with  only  a  cup  of  coffee  for  the  present.  I  believe 
Aunt  Sally  would  have  gone  without  a  word  if  my  mother 
had  told  her,  but  this,  from  an  outsider,  she  could  not  bear. 
(Aunt  B.  was  my  uncle's  wife  and  the  family  servants  had 
seen  very  little  of  her.)  She,  therefore,  demurred,  and  Aunt 
B.  calling  her  a  coward,  she  arose  in  a  perfect  fury,  and  with 
insubordination  written  upon  her  from  her  rigid  backbone  to 
her  flashing  eyes,  informed  Aunt  B.  "dat  she  warn  no  mo'  a 
coward  dan  de  res'  of  'em,  but  she  didn't  b'lieve  Mars  Gen'l 
Lee  hisself  cud  stan'  up  making  coffee  under  dat  tornady." 
Just  about  this  time  Uncle  Charles  sprawled  himself  out  upon 
the  floor  in  ungovernable  terror,  and  called  upon  the  Lord  to 
save  him  and  his  family.  ''Pray  for  us  all,  Uncle  Charles," 
screamed  my  aunt,  her  voice  just  heard  above  the  roar  of 
artillery.  The  cannonading  was  now  something  fearful.  Our 
house  had  been  struck  twice  and  the  shrieking  balls  and  burst- 
ing bombs  were  enough  to  appall  the  stoutest  heart.  My  aunt 
being  brave  in  speech,  but  in  reality  very  timorous,  and  Uncle 
Charles  "a  bright  and  shining  light"  among  the  colored  per- 

43 


Cannons  Stop  For  Dinner 

suasion,  she  again  requested  him  to  pray.  Aunt  Judy  by  this 
time  began  to  bewail  that  she  had  "let"  old  Miss  cow  in  the 
cowshed,"  and  mistaking  the  moaning  of  the  shells  for  the 
dying  groans  of  the  cow,  she  and  Douglas  lamented  it  in  true 
darkey  fashion.  Uncle  Charles  meanwhile  was  very  willing 
to  pray,  but  Aunt  Judy  objected  strenuously,  saying,  "dis  ain't 
no  time  to  be  spendin'  in  pra'ar,  Char's  Pryor,  wid  dem  bumb 
shells  flying  over  you  and  a  fizzlin'  around  you,  and  ole  Miss 
cow  dyin'  right  dar  in  your  sight."  But  when  the  house  was 
struck  for  the  third  time,  Aunt  B.,  in  despairing  accents, 
begged  Uncle  Charles  to  pray,  so  he  fell  upon  his  knees  by  an 
old  barrel,  in  the  middle  of  the  cellar  floor,  upon  which  sat  a 
solitary  candle,  whose  flickering  light  lit  up  his  hushed  and 
solemn  countenance,  and  in  tremulous  tones  with  many  inter- 
jections, offered  up  a  prayer. 

>Jc  >)t  >Ji  %l  ;•:  ;Jc  ^  ^  :|; 

My  mother  thought  of  my  father's  portrait,  and  afraid 
of  its  being  injured  she  determined  to  get  it  herself,  and  bring 
it  into  the  cellar.  Without  telling  anyone  of  her  intentions, 
she  left  the  cellar  and  went  up  into  the  parlor;  the  portrait 
was  hanging  just  over  a  sofa,  on  which  she  stood  to  take  it 
down.  She  had  just  reached  the  door  opposite  the  sofa  when 
a  shell  came  crashing  through  the  wall,  demolishing  the  sofa 
on  which  she  had  so  recently  stood,  as  well  as  many  other 
articles  of  furniture.  She  reached  the  cellar,  white  and  tremb- 
ling, but  with  the  portrait  unhurt  in  her  arms. 

At  one  o'clock  the  cannonading  suddenly  ceased  and  for 
one  hour  we  were  at  liberty  to  go  above  and  see  the  damage 
that  had  been  done.  My  mother's  first  efforts  were  directed 
towards  getting  a  lunch,  of  which  we  were  all  sorely  in  need. 
With  the  aid  of  one  of  the  frightened  servants  she  succeeded 
in  getting  a  fire  and  having  some  coffee  made  and  with  this. 
together  with  some  cold  bread  and  ham,  we  had  a  plentiful 
repast. 

What  a  scene  met  our  eyes;  our  pretty  garden  was  strewn 
with  cannon  balls  and  pieces  of  broken   shell-,  limbs  knocked 

44 


"Refngeeing"  in  Winter 

off  the  trees  and  the  grape  arbor  a  perfect  wreck.  The  house 
had  been  damaged  considerably,  several  large  holes  torn 
through  it,  both  in  front  and  back.  While  we  were  deploring 
the  damage  that  had  been  done,  Lieutenant  Eustace  returned 
in  breathless  haste  to  say  that  he  had  just  heard  an  order  from 
General  Lee  read  on  Commerce  Street,  saying  that  the  women 
and  children  must  leave  town,  as  he  would  destroy  it  with  hot 
shell  that  night,  sooner  than  let  it  fall  into  the  hands  of  the 
enemy,  who  were  rapidly  crossing  the  river  on  pontoon  bridges. 
They  urged  my  mother  to  take  her  children  and  fly  at  once 
from  the  town.  After  resisting  until  the  gentlemen  in  despair 
were  almost  ready  to  drag  her  from  her  dangerous  situation, 
she  finally  consented  to  leave.  The  wildest  confusion  now 
reigned,  the  servants  wringing  their  hands  and  declaring  they 
could  not  go  without  their  "Chists,"  which  they  all  managed 
to  get  somehow,  and  put  upon  their  heads,  but  the  gentlemen 
insisted  so  that  we  had  only  time  to  save  our  lives.  They 
would  not  even  let  my  mother  go  back  into  the  house  to  get 
her  purse  or  a  single  valuable.  So  we  started  just  as  we  were ; 
my  wrapping,  I  remember,  was  an  old  ironing  blanket,  with 
a  large  hole  burnt  in  the  middle.  I  never  did  find  out  whether 
Aunt  B.  ever  got  her  clothes  on,  for  she  stalked  ahead  of  us, 
wrapped  in  a  pure  white  counterpane,  a  tall,  ghostly  looking 
figure,  who  seemed  to  glide  with  incredible  rapidity  over  the 
frozen  ground.     *     *     * 

We  plodded  along  under  a  heavy  cross  fire,  balls  falling 
right  and  left  of  us.  We  left  the  town  by  way  of  the  old 
"plank  road,"  batteries  of  Confederates  on  both  sides.  The 
ground  was  rough  and  broken  up  by  the  tramping  of  soldiers 
and  the  heavy  wagons  and  artillery  that  had  passed  over  it, 
so  that  it  was  difficult  and  tiresome  to  walk,  and  the  sun  got 
warm  by  this  time  and  the  snow  was  melting  rapidly;  the 
mud  was  indescribable." 

We  had  now  reached  the  "Reservoir,"  a  wooden  building 
over  "Poplar  Spring,"  and  about  a  mile  from  town.  I  had 
already  lost  one  of  my  shoes  several  times,  because  of  having 

45 


Pillage  and  Plunder 


'& 


no  string  in  it,  and  my  little  brother  insisted  on  giving  me 
one  of  his,  so  we  sat  down  by  the  "Reservoir"  feeling  very 
secure,  but  were  terribly  alarmed  in  a  few  moments  by  a  ball 
coming  through  the  building  and  whizzing  very  close  to  our 
ears.  No,  this  would  not  do,  so  on  we  went,  footsore  and 
weary;  sometimes  we  would  meet  a  soldier  who  would  carry 
one  of  us  a  short  distance.  All  of  our  servants,  except  Ca'line, 
who  was  only  seven  years  old,  had  taken  some  other  direction. 
When  we  got  about  two  miles  from  town  we  overtook  many 
other  refugees ;  some  were  camping  by  the  way,  and  others 
pressing  on,  some  to  country  houses  which  were  hospitably 
thrown  open  to  wanderers  from  home,  and  others  to  "Salem 
Church,"  about  three  miles  from  Fredericksburg,  where  there 
was  a  large  encampment.  Our  destination  was  a  house  not 
far  from  "Salem  Church,"  which  we  now  call  the  "Refuge 
House.''  Exhausted,  we  reached  the  house  by  twilight,  found 
there  some  friends  who  had  been  there  some  weeks,  and  who 
kindly  took  us  into  their  room!  and  gave  us  every  attention. 
And  so  great  was  our  relief  to  feel  that  we  had  escaped  from 
the  horror  of  that  day,  that  such  small  matters  as  having  to 
sleep  in  the  room  with  a  dozen  people,  having  no  milk  and  no 
coffee,  our  principal  diet  consisting  of  corn  bread,  bacon  and 
sorghum,  seemed  only  slight  troubles." 

From  the  end  of  the  bombardment,  and  at  the  first  inva- 
sion of  the  town  by  Union  forces,  until  they  were  driven 
across  the  river  again,  Fredericksburg  was  mercilessly  sacked. 
All  day,  from  the  houses,  and  particularly  from  the  grand 
old  homes  that  distinguished  the  town,  came  the  noise  of 
splintering  furniture,  the  crash  of  chinaware,  and  —  now  and 
then  —  a  scream.  On  the  walls  hung  headless  portraits,  the 
face  gashed  by  bayonets.  Bayonets  ripped  open  mattresses 
and  the  feathers  heaped  in  piles  or  blew  about  the  streets, 
littered  with  women's  and  men's  clothing  and  letters  and 
papers  thrown  out  of  desks.  Mahogany  furniture  warmed 
the  despoilers,  and  ten  thousand  were  drunk  on  pilfered  liquors. 
Windows  and  doors  were  smashed,  the  streets  full  of  debris, 

46 


A  Carnival  of  Horrors 

through  which  drunken  men  grotesquely  garbed  in  women's 
shawls  and  bonnets,  staggered ;  flames  rose  in  smoke  pillars 
here  and  there,  and  the  provost  guard  was  helpless  to  control 
the  strange  orgy  of  stragglers  and  camp  followers  who  were 
wild  with  plunder  lust,  amid  the  dead  and  wounded  strewn 
about.  A  fearful  picture  of  war  was  Fredericksburg  in  those 
December  days  from  the  eleventh  to  the;  thirteenth. 

To  the  citizens  of  Fredericksburg,  those  days  meant  bank- 
ruptcy, for  their  slaves  walked  away,  their  stores  and  churches 
were  battered,  their  silverware  stolen,  their  homes  despoiled 
and  their  clothing  worn  or  thrown  away.  Wealthy  men  were 
to  walk  back  a  few  days  later  to  their  home  town  as  paupers; 
women  and  children  were  to  come  back  to  hunger  and  dis- 
comfort in  bleak  winter  weather;  and  all  this  was  the  result 
of  what  General  Lee  said  was  an  entirely  "unnecessary"  bom- 
bardment and  of  days  of  pillage,  which  no  earnest  attempt  to 
stop  was  made.  Fredericksburg  was  the  blackest  spot  on 
Burnside's  none  too  effulgent  reputation. 

From  the  army,  from  Southern  cities  and  from  individ- 
uals money  for  relief  came  liberally,  and  in  all  nearly  $170,000. 
was  contributed  to  aid  in  feeding,  clothing  and  making  hab- 
itable homes  for  the  unfortunate  town's  people.  A  good  many 
carloads  of  food  came,  too,  but  the  whole  barely  relieved  the 
worst  misery,  for  the  $170,000.  was  Confederate  money,  with 
its  purchasing  power  at  low  mark. 


47 


The  First  Battle 

When,  at  May  re's  Heights  and  Hamilton's  Crossing,  ivar  claimed  her  sacrifice 

Following  the  shelling  of  Fredericksburg,  on  December 
nth,  the  Union  army  began  to  cross  on  pontoons.  On  the 
1 2th  of  December,  under  cover  of  the  guns  and  of  fog,  almost 
the  whole  Union  army  crossed  on  three  pontoons,  one  near  the 
foot  of  Hawk  street,  another  just  above  the  car  bridge,  and 
one  at  Deep  Run.  On  the  morning  of  December  13th,  General 
Burnside's  army  was  drawn  up  in  a  line  of  battle  from  oppo- 
site Falmouth  to  Deep  Run.  It  was,  say  they  who  saw  the 
vast  army  with  artillery  and  cavalry  advanced,  banners  flying 
and  the  bayonets  of  their  infantry  hosts  gleaming  as  the  fog 
lifted,  one  of  the  most  imposing  sights  of  the  war. 

General  Burnside  actually  had  in  line  and  fought  during 
the  day,  according-  to  his  report.  100,000  effective  men. 

General  Lee  had  57,000  effectives,  ranged  along  the  hills 
from  Taylors,  past  Snowden,  past  Marye's  Heights,  past  Hazel 
Run  and  on  to  Hamilton's  Crossing. 

There  were  preliminary  skirminishes  of  cavalry,  light 
artillery  and  infantry.  The  enemy  tried  to  "feel"  General 
Lee's  lines. 

Then,  about  10  o'clock,  they  advanced  against  the  hills 
near  Hamilton's  Crossing,  where  Jackson's  Corps  was  posted, 
in  a  terrific  charge  across  a  broad  plateau  between  the  river  and 
the  hills  to  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  the  Confederate  posi- 
tion, where  they  broke  under  terrific  artillery  and  musketry 
fire.  At  one  o'clock  55,000  men,  the  whole  of  Franklin's  and 
Hooker's  Grand  Divisions  advanced  again  in  the  mightiest 
single  charge  of  the  Civil  War.  Stuart  and  Pelham  (he  earned 
that  day  from  Lee  the  title  of  "The  Gallant  Pelham")  raked 
them  with  light  artillery,  but  nevertheless  they  forced  a  wedge 
through  Jackson's  lines  and  had  won  the  day,  until  Jackson's 
reserves,  thrown  into  the  breach,  drove  them  out  and  threw 

48 


At  Hamilton's  Crossing 

back  the  whole  line.  As  dusk  came  on,  Stuart  and  Pelham 
counter  charged,  advancing  their  guns  almost  to  the  Bowling 
Green  road,  and  Jackson  prepared  to  charge  and  "drive  them 
into  the  river,"  but  was  stopped  by  the  heavy  Union  guns  on 
Stafford  hills. 

During  the  fiercest  part  of  the  battle,  "Stonewall"  Jackson 
was  on  the  hill  just  on  the  Fredericksburg  side  of  Hamilton's 
Crossing  where  Walker's  artillery  was  posted,  but  toward 
evening,  fired  with  his  hope  of  driving  the  Union  forces  across 
the  river,  he  rode  rapidly  from  place  to  place,  sending  out 
frequent  orders.    One  of  these  he  gave  to  an  aide. 

"Captain,  go  through  there  and  if  you  and  your  horse 
come  out  alive,  tell  Stuart  I  am  going  to  advance  my  whole 
line  at  sunset."  It  was  this  charge,  mentioned  above,  which 
failed. 

Late  that  night,  rising  from  the  blankets  which  he  shared 
with  a  Chaplain,  Jackson  wrote  some  orders.  While  he  was 
doing  this,  an  orderly  came  and  standing  at  the  tent  flap,  said, 
"General  Gregg  is  dying,  General,  and  sent  me  to  say  to  you 
that  he  wrote  you  a  letter  recently  in  which  he  used  expressions 
he  is  sorry  for.  He  says  he  meant  no  disrespect  by  that  letter 
and  was  only  doing  what  he  thought  was  his  duty.  He  hopes 
you  will  forgive  him." 

Without  hesitation,  Jackson,  who  was  deeply  stirred, 
answered,  "Tell  General  Gregg  I  will  be  with  him  directly." 

He  rode  through  the  woods  back  to  where  the  brave 
Georgian  was  dying,  and  day  was  about  to  break  when  he 
came  back  to  his  troops. 

General  Maxey  Gregg,  of  Georgia,  was  killed  in  action 
here,  as  were  a  number  of  other  gallant  officers. 

Jackson  held  the  right  of  the  Confederate  lines  all  day 
with  26,000  men  against  55,000.  His  losses  were  about  3,415, 
while  Hooker  and  Franklin  lost  4,447.  Meanwhile,  against 
Marye's  Heights,  the  left  center  of  the  line,  almost  two  miles 
away,  General  Burnside  sent  again  and  again  terrific  infantry 
charges. 

49 


The  Charge  at  Marye's  Heights 

The  hills  just  back  of  Fredericksburg  are  fronted  by  an 
upward  sloping  plane,  and  at  the  foot  of  that  part  of  the 
hills  called  Marye's  Heights  is  a  stone  wall  and  the  "Sunken 
Road" — as  fatal  here  for  Burnside  as  was  the  Sunken  Road 
at  Waterloo  for  Napoleon.  On  Marye's  Heights  was  the 
Washington  Artillery,  and  a  number  of  guns  —  a  veritable 
fortress,  ready,  as  General  Pegram  said,  "to  sweep  the  plans 
in  front  as  close  as  a  fine-tooth  comb."  At  the  foot  of  the 
heights  behind  the  stone  wall  were  Cobb's  Georgians,  Ker- 
shaw's South  Carolinians,  and  Ransom's  and  Cobb's  North 
Carolinas  —  nine  thousand  riflemen,  six  deep,  firing  over  the 
front  lines'  shoulders,  so  that,  so  one  officer  wrote  "they 
literally  sent  bullets  in  sheets." 

Against  this  impregnable  place,  Burnside  launched  charge 
after  charge,  and  never  did  men  go  more  bravely  and  cer- 
tainly to  death.  This  was  simultaneous  with  the  fighting  at 
Hamilton's  Crossing. 

Meagher's  Irish  Brigade  went  first  across  the  plain. 
Detouring  from  Hanover  street  and  George  street,  they  formed 
line  of  battle  on  the  lowest  ground,  and  with  cedar  branches 
waving  in  their  hats,  bravely  green  in  memory  of  "the  ould 
sod"  they  swept  forward  until  the  rirles  behind  the  wall  and 
the  cannon  on  the  hill  decimated  their  ranks;  and  yet  again 
they  formed  and  charged,  until  over  the  whole  plain  lay 
the  dead,  with  green  cedar  boughs  waving  idly  in  their  hats. 
The  Irish  Brigade  was  practically  exterminated,  and  three 
more  charges  by  larger  bodies  failed,  although  one  Northern 
officer  fell  within  twenty-five  yards  of  the  wall.  The  day 
ended  in  the  utter  defeat  of  the  Union  Army,  which  withdrew 
into  Fredericksburg  at  night. 

In  front  of  the  wall  8,217  Union  soldiers  were  killed  or 
wounded,  and  in  the  "Sunken  Road"  the  Confederates  lost 
1,962. 

The  total  Union  loss  in  the  whole  battle  of  Fredericksburg 


1  M 


>«V  /  • 


wa>   12,664  and  the  Confederates'  1 

General  J.  R.  Cook,  of  the  Confederate  Army,  was  killed 
almost  at  the  spot   where  Cobb  fell.     General  C.   F.  Jackson 


The  Death  of  General  Cobb 

and  General  Bayard,  of  the  Union  Army,  were  killed,  the  latter 
dying  in  the  Bernard  House,  ''Mansfield,"  where  Franklin  had 
his  headquarters. 

General  T.  R.  R.  Cobb,  the  gallant  commander  of  the 
Georgians,  fell  mortally  wounded  at  the  stone  wall,  and  tradi- 
tion has  said  that  he  was  killed  by  a  shell  fired  from  the  lawn 
of  his  mother's  home,  a  dramatic  story  that  is  refuted  by  evi- 
dence that  he  was  killed  by  a  sharpshooter  in  a  house  at  the 
left  and  in  front  of  the  "Sunken  Road." 

But  the  brilliant  Georgian,  who  aided  in  formulating  the 
Confederate  Constitution,  was  killed  within  sight  of  the  house, 
where,  more  than  forty  years  before,  the  elder  Cobb  met,  and 
in  which  he  married,  she  who  was  to  be  the  General's  mother. 
Journeying  late  in  1819  North;  to  attend  Congress,  Senator 
John  Forsythe,  who  was  born  in  Fredericksburg,  and  Senator 
Cobb,  Sr.,  were  guests  of  Thomas  R.  Rootes,  Esq.,  at  Federal 
Hill,  a  great  house  that  sits  at  the  edge  of  the  town,  over- 
looking the  little  valley  and  Marye's  Heights,  and  there  began 
a  romance  that  led  to  marriage  of  Miss  Rootes  and  Senator 
Cobb,  in  the  mansion,  in  1820.  From  the  spot  where  he  stood 
when  he  died,  had  not  the  smoke  of  a  terrific  battle  screened 
it,  their  son,  the  Georgian  General,  could  have  clearly  seen  the 
windows  of  the  room  in  which  his  parents  were  married. 

General  Cobb  died  in  the  yard  of  a  small  house,  just  at  the 
edge  of  the  "Sunken  Road,"  ministered  to  in  his  last  moments, 
as  was  many  another  man  who  drank  the  last  bitter  cup  that 
day,  by  an  angel  of  mercy  and  a  woman  of  dauntless  courage, 
Mrs.  Martha  Stevens. 

Her  house  was  in  the  center  of  the  fire,  yet  she  refused 
to  leave  it,  and  there  between  the  lines,  with  the  charges  rolling 
up  to  her  yardl  fence  and  tons  of  lead  shrieking  about  her, 
Mrs.  Stevens  stayed  all  day,  giving  the  wounded  drink,  and 
bandaging  their  wounds  until  every  sheet  and  piece  of  clothing 
in  the  house  had  been  used  to  bind  a  soldier's  hurts.  At 
times  the  fire  of  Northern  troops  was  concentrated  on  her  house 
so  that  General  Lee,  frowning,  turned  to  those  about  him  and 
said:  "I  wish  those  people  would  let  Mrs.  Stevens  alone." 

5i 


Lee  Spares  Old  "Chatham" 

Nothing  in  the  war  was  finer  than  the  spirit  of  this 
woman,  who  stayed  between  the,  lines  in  and  about  her  house, 
through  the  planks  of  which  now  and  then  a  bullet  splintered 
its  way,  miraculouly  living  in  a  hail  of  missiles  where,  it 
seemed,  nothing  else  could  live. 

During  the  battle  at  Fredericksburg,  General  Lee  stood 
on  "Lee's  Hill,"  an  eminence  near  Hazel  Run,  and  between 
Marye's  Heights  and  Hamilton's  crossing.  Looking  across 
the  Rappahannock  he  could  see  "Chatham,"  the  great  winged 
brick  house  where  General  Burnside  had  headquarters,  and 
where,  under  the  wide  spreading  oaks,  General  Lee  had  won 
his  bride,  the  pretty  Mary  Custis.  The  fine  old  place  was  now 
the  property  of  Major  Lacy,  who  rode  up  to  Lee  and  said: 
"General  there  are  a  group  of  Yankee  officers  on  my  porch. 
I  do  not  want  my  house  spared.  \  ask  permission  to  give 
orders  to  shell  it."  General  Lee,  smiling,  said:  "Major,  I  do 
not  want  to  shell  your  fine  old  house.  Besides,  it  has  tender 
memories  for  me.     I  courted  my  bride  under  its  trees." 

In  all  this  saturnalia  of  blood,  it  is  a  relief  to  find  some- 
thing in  lighter  vein,  and  in  this  case  it  is  furnished  by  two 
Irishmen.  Meagher  and  Mitchell.  This  little  incident  takes 
us  back  some  years  to  "Ould  Ireland."  Here  three  young 
Irishmen,  Charles  Francis  Meagher,  John  Boyle  O'Reilv  and 
John  Mitchell,  known  respectively,  as  the  Irish  Orater,  Poet 
and  Patriot,  fired  by  love  for  Free  Ireland  and  Home  Rule, 
earned  exile  for  themselves  and  left  Ireland  hurriedly.  O'Reily 
settled  in  Boston  and  became  a  well-known  poet  and  a  cham- 
pion of  the  North.  Meagher  settled  in  New  York,  and  at 
the  outbreak  of  the  War  organized  the  Irish  Brigade,  of 
which  he  was  made  Brigadier-General.  Mitchell  settled  in 
Richmond,  where  he  became  the  editor  of  the  Richmond  En- 
quirer, and,  as  a  spectator,  stood  on  Marye's  Heights  during 
the  battle  and  witnessed  the  desperate  charges  and  bloody  re- 
pulses of  his  old  friend,  Meagher;  and  as  he  watched  he  unbur- 
dened his  soul.  I  lis  refrain  varied  between  exultation  at 
the  sight  of  a  fine  fight  and   execration,   in   picturesque  and 

52 


•/. 


The  Good  Samaritan 


satisfying  language,  of  the  "renegade  Irishman,"  his  one-time 
friend,  who  would  fight  against  the  very  principle,  the  ad- 
vocacy of  which  had  brought  them  exile  from  Ireland. 

Mitchell's  grandson  was  John  Purroy  Mitchell,  mayor 
of  New  York  City,  who  died  in  the  Aviation  service  during 
the  late  war. 

There  was  another  soul  at  the  Battle  of  Fredericksburg 
whose  spirit  of  mercy  to  the  suffering  was  stronger  than  the 
dread  of  death,  and  in  the  Chapel  of  the  Prince  of  Peace  at 
Gettysburg,  is  a  tablet  to  him,  Dick  Kirkland  —  the  "Angel 
of  Maryes'  Heights'" —  a  gracious  memorial  placed  by  the 
Federal  survivors  of  that  fight. 

Dick  Kirkland,  a  Southern  soldier,  who  all  day  long  had 
fought  behind  the  Stone  Wall,  laid  aside  all  animosity  when 
night  fell  and  the  bitter  cries  arose  in  the  chill  air  from  the 
wounded  and  dying  on  the  plain.  The  pitiful  calls  for  "water, 
water"  so  moved  the  young  South  Carolinian  that  he  asked 
his  commanding  officer  to  be  allowed  to  relieve  the  sufferers. 
His  request  was  at  first  refused,  but  when  he  begged,  permis- 
sion was  given,  and  taking  as  many  full  canteens  as  he  could 
carry,  he  went  out  among  the  pitiful  forms  dotting  the  field, 
while  the  shells  and  rifle  fire  still  made  it  most  dangerous, 
administering  to  the  enemy.  He  was  a  good  Samaritan  and 
unafraid,  who  is  affectionately  remembered  by  a  grateful  foe. 
Kirkland  was  more  merciful  to  the  wounded  Federals  than  was 
their  commander,  for  it  was  forty-eight  hours  before  General 
Burnside  could  swallow  his  pride  and  acknowledge  defeat  by 
applying  for  a  truce.  In  the  interval,  during  forty-eight  hours 
of  winter  weather  while  the  wounded  lay  unsheltered,  chill 
winds  sweeping  over  them,  the  wailing  and  the  agonized  crying 
slowly  died  out.  Every  wounded  man  who  could  not  crawl 
or  walk  died,  and  when  the  truce  came  more  than  four 
thousand  bodies  were  piled  in  front  of  the  "Sunken  Road." 

At  night  of  December  13th,  Burnside  was  utterly  defeated 
and  after  quietly  facing  the  Southern  forces  all  day  on  the 
14th,  he  was  practically  forced  to  abandon  his  battle  plans  by 

53 


A  Critique  of  the  Annies 

the  protests  of  his  Generals,  who  practically  refused  to  charge 
again,  and  moved  his  army  across  the  river  at  night. 


In  the  whole  action  at  Fredericksburg,  General  Lee  used 
hut  57,000  men,  while  official  reports  state  that  the  Norhern 
forces  "in  the  fight"  numbered  100,000  As  bearing  on  this 
(and  most  assuredly  with  no  intention  to  belittle  the  gallant 
men  of  the  Federal  Army,  who  fought  so  bravely)  the  condi- 
tion of  Burnside's  Army,  due  to  the  policy  of  his  government 
and  to  Major-General  Hooker's  insubordination,  is  to  be  con- 
sidered. An  estimate  of  this  army  by  the  New  York  Times 
shows  to  what  pass  vacillation  had  brought  it.  The'  Times 
said  after  Fredericksburg. 

"Sad,  sad  it  is  to  look  at  this  suberb  Army  of  the  Poto- 
mac—  the  match  of  which  no  conqueror  ever  led  —  this 
incomparable  army,  fit  to  perform  the  mission  the  country  has 
imposed  upon  it  —  paralyzed,  petrified,  put  under  a  blight  and 
a  spell.  You  see  men  who  tell  you  that  they  have  been  in 
a  dozen  battles  and  have  been  licked  and  chased  every  time  — 
they  would  like  to  chase  once  to  see  how  it  "feels."  This  begins 
to  tell  on  them.  Their  splendid  qualities,  their  patience,  faith, 
hope  and  courage,  are  gradually  oozing  out.  Certainly  never 
were  a  graver,  gloomier,  more  sober,  sombre,  serious  and 
unmusical  body  of  men  than  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  at 
the  present  time.'' 

On  the  other  hand,  thus  spoke  the  correspondent  of  the 
London  Times  of  the  "tatterdermalion  regiments  of  the 
South"  : 

"It  is  a  strange  thing  to  look  at  these  men,  so  ragged, 
slovenly,  sleeveless,  without  a  superfluous  ounce  of  flesh  on 
their  bones,  with  wild,  matted  hair,  in  mendicants  rags,  and 
to  think,  when  the  battle  flags  go  to  the  front,  how  they  can 
and  do  fight.  'There  is  only  one  attitude  in  which  I  should 
never  be  ashamed  of  you  seeing  my  men.  and  that  is  when  they 
are  fighting.'  These  were  General  Lee's  words  to  me  the  first 
time  I  ever  saw  him." 

54 


At  Chancellorsville 

The  Struggle  in  the  Pine  Woods  when  death  struck  at  Southern  hearts 

From  the  close  of  the  battle  at  Fredericksburg  in  Decem- 
ber 1862,  until  the  spring  of  1863,  General  Burnside's  Army 
of  the  Potomac  and  General  Lee's  Army  of  Northern  Virginia 
lay  in  camp ;  the  first  on  the  north  and  the  second  on  the  south 
bank  of  the  Rappahannock.  The  little  town,  now  fairly  well  re- 
populated  by  returned  refugees,  lay  between  the  hosts.  The 
Northern  lines  practically  began  at  Falmouth,  where  General 
Daniel  Butterfleld  had  headquarters,  and  at  which  spot  young 
Count  Zeppelin  and  his  assistants  were  busily  arranging  to 
send  up  a  great  Observation  Balloon  with  a  signalling  outfit. 
Southward,  Lee's  army  stretched  over  thirty-three  miles,  from 
the  fords  of  the  Rappahannock,  where  the  hard  riding  cavalry- 
men of  Stuart  and  W.  H.  F.  Lee  watched,  to  Port  Royal,  Jack- 
son's right. 

Burnside's  headquarters  were  the  Phillips  house  and  Chat- 
ham, (recently  owned  by  the  famous  journalist,  Mark  Sullivan 
and  where  he  and  Mrs.  Sullivan  made  their  home  for  some 
years).  Hooker,  part  of  the  time,  was  at  the  Phillips  house, 
Lee  in  a  tent,  near  Fredericksburg,  while  General  Jackson 
had  headquarters  first  in  an  outbuilding  at  Moss  Neck,  now  the 
home  of  Count  d'Adhemar  and  later  in  a  tent.  It  was  here 
that  he  became  fond  of  little  Farley  Carbin,  who  came  every 
day  to  perch  on  his  knee  and  receive  little  presents  from  him. 
One  day  he  had  nothing  to  give  her,  and  so,  ere  she  left,  he 
tore  the  gold  braid  from  the  new  hat  that  was  part  of  a  hand- 
some uniform  just  given  him  by  General  "Je^''  Stuart,  and 
placed  it  like  a  garland  on  her  pretty  curly  head.  During  the 
winter  the  General,  who  from  the  beginning  of  the  war  never 
slept  at  night  outside  his  army's  camp,  nor  had  an  honr's  leave 
of  absence,  saw  for  the  first  time  since  he  left  Lexington,  and 
for  next  to  the  last  time  on  earth,  his  wife  and  little  daughter, 

55 


Christmas  at   the   Front 

whom  he  so  fervently  loved.     They  spent  some  weeks  near 
him  at  Moss  Xeck. 

Christmas  Eve  came.  In  the  Southern  camp  back  of  the 
hills  down  the  river  road,  up  towards  Banks  Ford,  out  at 
Salem  Church,  and  even  in  the  town,  hunger  and  cold  were  the 
lot  of  all.  General  Lee,  wincing  at  the  sufferings  of  his  "tat- 
terdermalion"  forces,  wrote  and  asked  that  the  rations  of  his 
men  be  increased,  but  a  doctor-inspector  sent  out  by  the  often 
futile  Confederate  Government  reported  that  the  bacon  ration 
of  Lee's  army  —  one-half  a  pound  a  day,  might  be  cut  down, 
as  "the  men  can  be  kept  alive  on  this."  General  Lee  himself 
wrote  that  his  soldiers  were  eating  berries,  leaves,  roots  and 
the  bark  of  trees  to  "supplement  the  ration,"  and  although  at 
this  time  the  Confederate  Government  had  a  store  of  bacon 
and  corn  meal  that  would  have  fed  all  its  armies  a  half  year, 
Lee's  ragged  soldiers  starved  throughout  the  winter.  It  is 
worthy  of  note  here  that  when  Lee's  starving  army  moved, 
foodless,  toward  that  last  day  at  Appomattox,  they  marched 
past  50,000  pounds  of  bacon  alone,  which  the  Confederate  com- 
missary, at  Mr.  Jefferson  Davis'  orders,  burned  next  day. 

We  spoke  of  Christmas  Eve,  when  in  the  long  lines  of  the 
two  camps  great  fires  beamed,  voices  rose  in  songs  and  hymns, 
and  bands  played.  Late  in  the  evening,  when  dusk  had  settled, 
a  band  near  Brompton  broke  out  defiantly  into  "Dixie,"  and 
from  the  Washington  Farm  a  big  band  roared  out  "The  Battle 
Hymn."  There  was  a  pause  and  then,  almost  simultaneously, 
they  began  "Home.  Sweet  Home."  and  catching  the  time 
played  it  through  together.  When  it  was  done,  up  from  the 
camps  of  these  boys  who  were  to  kill  and  be  killed,  who  were  to 
die  in  misery  on  many  a  sodden  field,  rose  a  wild  cheer. 

Hardly  could  two  great  armies  ever  before  have  lain  for 
months  within  sight  of  each  other  as  these  two  did  in  almost 
amicable  relations.  There  was  no  firing;  the  cannon-crowned 
hills  were  silent.  Drills  and  great  reviews  took  place  on  either 
bank  of  the  river  and  in  the  Confederate  ranks  there  went  on 
a  great  religious  "revival"  that  swept  through  the  organization. 


The  Coming  of  Spring 

Along  the  banks  of  the  river  where  pickets  patrolled  by  day, 
and  their  little  fires  flamed  in  the  night,  trading  was  active. 
From  the  Union  bank  would  come  the  call  softly : 

"Johnny." 

"Yea,  Yank." 

"Got  any  tobacco?" 

"Yes,  want 't  trade?" 

"Half  pound  of  coffee  for  two  plugs  of  tobacco,  Reb." 

"  'right,  send  'er  over." 

They  traded  coffee,  tobacco,  newspapers  and  provisions, 
sometimes  wading  out  and  meeting  in  mid-river,  but  as  the 
industry  grew,  miniature  ferry  lines,  operated  by  strings,  began 
to  ply. 

Soldiers  and  Generals  passed  and  repassed  in  the  streets  of 
Fredericksburg,  where  wreckage  still  lay  about  in  confusion, 
houses  presented  dilapidated  fronts,  and  only  a  few  of  the  citi- 
zens attempted  to  occupy  their  homes. 

Once,  in  midwinter,  the  armies  became  active  when  Burn- 
side  attempted  to  move  his  army  and  cross  the  river  above 
Fredericksburg;  but  only  for  a,  few  days,  for  that  unfortunate 
General's  plans  were  ruined  by  a  deluge  and  his  army  "stuck 
in  the  mud."  General  Hooker  took  his  place. 

About  April  26  Hooker's  great  army,  "The  finest  army  on 
the  planet,"  he  bombastically  called  it,  moved  up  the  river  and 
began  crossing.  It  was  his  purpose  to  get  behind  Lee's  lines, 
surprise  him  and  defeat  him  from  the  rear.  On  April  twenty- 
ninth  and  thirtieth,  Hooker  got  in  position  around  Chancellors- 
ville,  in  strong  entrenchments,  a  part  of  his  army  amounting 
to  85,000  men,  but  the  Confederate  skirmishers  were  already 
in  front  of  him. 

It  was  the  Northern  Commander's  plan  for  Sedgwick, 
left  at  Fredericksburg  with  40,000,  to  drive  past  Fredericks- 
burg and  on  to  Chancellorsville,  and  thus  to  place  the  Southern 
forces  between  the  two  big  Federal  armies  and  crush  it. 

57 


The  First  Aerial  Scout 

Before  the  great  battle  of  Chancellorsville  began,  this 
message  came  down  from  the  first  balloon  ever  successfully 
used  in  war,  tugging  at  its  cable  two  thousand  feet  above  the 
Scott  house,  on  Falmouth  Heights: 

Balloon   in  the   Air,   April  29,    1863. 
Major-General    Butterfield, 

Chief  of   Staff,   Army  of   the   Potomac. 

General:  The  enemy's  line  of  hattle  is  formed  in  the  edge  of  the 
woods,  at  the  foot  of  the  heights,  from  opposite  Fredericksburg  to  some 
distance  to  the  left  of  our  lower  crossing.  Their  line  appears  quite  thin, 
compared  with  our  forces.  Their  tents  all  remain  as  heretofore,  as  far 
as  I  can  see. 

T.  C.  S.  LOWE, 
Chief  of   Aeronauts. 

But  the  force  did  not  "remain  as  heretofore"  long,  though 
the  tents  were  left  to  confuse  the  enemy,  for  on  April  29  Gen- 
eral Anderson  moved  to  Chancellorsville,  followed  on  April  30 
bv  General  McLaws;  and  under  cover  of  darkness  "Stonewall 
Jackson"  moved  to  the  same  place  that  night,  with  26,000  men. 
On  May  1,  then,  Hooker's  91,000  at  Chancellorsville  were 
being  pressed  by  Lee's  army  of  46,000. 

General  Early's  command  of  9,000  and  Barksdale's 
brigade  of  r.ooo  and  some  detached  troops  were  left  to  defend 
Fredericksburg  against  Sedgwick's  corps,  which  was  now 
crossing  the  Rappahannock,  30,000  strong.  At  1 1  A.  M.,  May 
1,  General  Lee's  army,  with  Jackson's  corps  on  his  left,  began 
the  attack  at  Chancellorsville,  of  which  this  dispatch  speaks: 

Balloon    in   the   Air,    May    1,    1863. 

Major-General    Sedgwick. 

Commanding    Left    Wing.    Army    of    the    Potomac. 

General:  In  a  northwest  direction,  about  twelve  miles,  an  engage- 
ment    is    going    on. 

T.   C.   S.   LOWE, 
Chief  of  Aeronauts. 


Fight   at   Chanccllorsville 


*& 


Before  evening  of  May  i  Hooker's  advance  guard  was 
driven  back,  and  the  Confederate  forces  swept  on  until  within 
one  mile  of  Chancellorsville,  and  there,  stopped  by  a  "position 
of  great  natural  strength"  (General  Lee)  and  by  deep 
entrenchments,  log  breastworks  and  felled  trees,  they  ceased 
to  progress.  It  was  evident  at  nightfall  that  with  his  inferior 
force  the  Southern  commander  could  not  drive  Hooker,  and 
that  if  he  failed  to  do  so,  Sedgwick  would  drive  back  the  small 
force  in  Fredericksburg  and  would  come  on  from  Fredericks- 
burg and  crush  him. 

Jackson  and  Lee  bivouaced  that  night  near  where  the 
Old  Plank  Road  and  the  Furnace  Road  intersect,  and  here 
formulated  their  plans  for  the  morrow.  From  Captain  Murray 
Taylor,  of  General  A.  P.  Hill's  staff,  they  learned  that  a  road 
existed,  by  advancing  down  which  (the  Furnace  Road)  then 
turning  sharply  and  marching  in  a  "V"  Jackson's  plan  to  turn 
Hooker's  right  might  be  carried  out,  and  at  Captain  Taylor's 
suggestion  they  sent  for  ''Jack"  Hayden,  who  could  not  be 
gotten  at  once,  and  who,  being  an  old  man,  was  "hiding  out" 
to  avoid  "Yankee"  marauders. 

Lee  and  Jackson  slept  on  the  ground.  Jackson,  over  whom 
an  officer  had  thrown  his  overcoat,  despite  his  protests,  waited 
until  the  officer  dozed,  gently  laid  the  coat  over  him  and  slept 
uncovered,  as  he  had  not  brought  his  own  overcoat.  Later, 
arising  chilled,  he  sat  by  the  fire  until  near  dawn,  when  his 
army  got  in  motion. 

When  Jackson  moved  away  in  the  early  hours  of  May  2 
there  were  left  to  face  Hooker's  91,000  men  on  the  Federal 
left,  Lee's  14,000  men,  attacking  and  feinting,  and  nowhere 
else  a  man.  Jackson  was  moving  through  tangled  forests, 
over  unused  roads,  and  before  5  o'clock  of  that  memorable 
afternoon  of  May  2  he  had  performed  the  never-equalled  feat 
of  moving  an  army,  infantry  and  artillery  of  26,000  men 
sixteen  miles,  entirely  around  the  enemy,  and  reversing  his 
own  army's  front.  He  was  now  across  the  Plank  Road  and 
the  Turnpike,  about  four  miles  from  Chancellorsville,  facing 

59 


Jackson's  Stroke  of  Genius 

toward  Lee's  line,  six  miles  away.     And  Hooker  was  between 
them ! 

It  was  5:30  when  Jackson's  command  (Colston's  and 
Rhodes'  Divisions,  with  A.  P.  Hill  in  reserve)  gave  forth  the 
rebel  yell  and  sweeping  along  through  the  woods  parallel  to 
the  roads,  fell  on  Hooker's  right  while  the  unsuspecting  army 
was  at  supper.     The  Federals  fled  in  utter  disorder. 

Before  his  victorious  command.  Jackson  drove  Hooker's 
army  through  the  dark  pine  thickets  until  the  Federal  left  had 
fallen  on  Chancellorsville  and  the  right  wing  was  piled  up  and 
the  wagon  trains  fleeing,  throwing  the  whole  retreating  army 
into  confusion.  At  9  o'clock  he  held  some  of  the  roads  in 
Hooker's  rear,  and  the  Northern  army  was  in  his  grasp. 

Hill  was  to  go  forward  now.  He  rode  to  the  front  with 
his  staff,  a  short  distance  behind  Jackson,  who  went  a  hundred 
yards  ahead  of  the  Confederate  lines  on  the  turnpike  to  investi- 
gate. Bullets  suddenly  came  singing  from  the  Northern  lines 
and  Jackson  turned  and  rode  back  to  his  own  lines.  Suddenly 
a  Confederate  picket  shouted  ''Yankee  cavalry,"  as  he  rode 
through  the  trees  along  the  edge  of  the  Plank  Road.  Then  a 
volley  from  somewhere  in  Lane's  North  Carolina  ranks  poured 
out,  and  three  bullets  struck  Jackson  in  the  hand  and  arms. 
His  horse  bolted,  but  was  stopped  and  turned,  and  Jackson  was 
aided  by  General  Hill  to  dismount.  Almost  all  of  Hill's  staff 
were  killed  or  wounded. 

There  was  trouble  getting  a  litter,  and  the  wounded  man 
tried  to  walk,  leaning  on  Major  Leigh  and  Lieutenant  James 
Power  Smith.  The  road  was  filled  with  men.  wounded,  retreat- 
ing, lost  from  their  commands.  Hill's  lines  were  forming  for  a 
charge  and  from  these  Jackson  hid  his  face  —  they  must  not 
know  he  was  wounded.  A  litter  was  brought  and  they  bore  the 
sufferer  through  the  thickets  until  a  fusilade  passed  about  them 
and  struck  down  a  litter-bearer,  so  that  the  General  was  thrown 
from  the  litter  his  crushed  shoulder  striking  a  pine  stump,  and 
now  for  the  first  time,  and  last  time,  lie  groaned.     Again  they 

60 


■f. 


The  Death  of  "Stonewall" 

bore  him  along  the  Plank  Road  until  a  gun  loaded  with  can- 
ister swept  that  road  clear,  and  the  litter-bearers  fled,  leaving 
General  Jackson  lying  in  the  road.  And  here,  with  infinite 
heroism,  Lieutenant  Smith  (see  sketch  of  life)  and  Major 
Leigh  lay  with  their  bodies  over  him  to  shield  him  from 
missiles. 

Later  the  wounded  officer  was  gotten  to  a  field  headquar- 
ters near  Wilderness  Run,  and  Dr.  Hunter  McGuire  and  assist- 
ants amputated  one  arm  and  bound  the  other  arm  and  hand. 
Two  days  later  he  was  removed  to  Mr.  Chandler's  home,  near 
Guineas,  where,  refusing  to  enter  the  mansion  because  he  feared 
his  presence  might  bring  trouble  on  the  occupants  should  the 
Federals  come,  and  because  the  house  was  crowded  with  other 
wounded,  he  was  placed  in  a  small  outbuilding,  which  stands 
today.  The  record  of  his  battle  against  death  in  this  little 
cabin,  his  marvelous  trust  in  God  and  his  uncomplaining  days 
of  suffering  until  he  opened  his  lips  to  feebly  say:  "Let  us  pass 
over  the  river  and  rest  under  the  shade  of  the  trees"  is  a 
beautiful  story  in  itself.  He  died  from  pneumonia,  which 
developed  when  his  wounds  were  beginning  to  heal.  The 
wounds  only  would  not  have  killed  him  and  the  pneumonia 
probably  resulted  from  sleeping  uncovered  on  the  night  before 
referred  to.  Mrs.  Jackson  and  their  little  child.  Dr.  Hunter 
McGuire,  Lieutenant  James  Power  Smith,  his  aide-de-camp; 
Mrs.  Beasley  and  a  negro  servant  were  those  closest  to  him 
in  his  dying  hours. 

Hill  succeeded  Jackson,  and  in  twenty  minutes  was 
wounded  and  Stuart  succeeded  him,  and  fighting  ceased  for 
the  night. 

On  May  3,  General  Lee  attacked  again,  uniting  his  left 
wing  with  Stuart's  right,  and  a  terrific  battle  took  place  that 
lasted  all  day,  and  at  its  end  Hooker's  great  army  was  defeated 
and  dispirited,  barely  holding  on  in  their  third  line  trenches, 
close  to  the  river;  that  worse  did  not  befall  him  was  due  to 
events  about  Fredericksburg.  (We  may  note  here  that  Hooker 
lost  at  Chancellorsville  16,751  men  while  Lee  lost  about 
1 1,000.) 

61 


Buttle  at  Salon  Church 

For  Sedgwick,  with  30,000  men,  took  Marye's  Heights  at 
1  o'clock  of  this  day,  losing  about  1,000  men,  and  immediately 
General  Brooks'  division  (  10.000)  marchd  out  the  Plank 
Road,  where  on  each  successive  crest.  Wilcox's  Alabamians, 
with  a  Virginia  battery  of  two  guns  (4,000  in  all)  disputed 
the  way.  At  Salem  Church,  General  Wilcox  planted  his  troops 
for  a  final  stand. 

Mere  at  Salem  Church  the  battle  began  when  Sedgwick's 
advance  guard,  beating  its  way  all  day  against  a  handful  of 
Confederates,  finally  formed  late  in  the  afternoon  of  May  3, 
prepared  to  throw  their  column  in  a  grand  assault  against  the 
few7  Confederates  standing  sullenly  on  the  pine1  ridge  which 
crosses  the  Plank  Road  at  right  angles  about  where  Salem 
Church  stands.  Less  than  4,000  Alabama  troops,  under  Gen- 
eral Wilcox,  held  the  line,  and  against  these  General  Brooks, 
of  Sedgwick's  corps,  threw  his  10,000  men.  They  rushed 
across  the  slopes,  met  in  the  thicket,  and  here  they  fought  des- 
perately for  an  hour.  Reinforcements  reached  the  Confed- 
erates at  sundown,  and  next  morning  General  Lee  had  come 
with  Anderson's  and  McLaw's  commands,  and  met  nearly  the 
whole  of  Sedgwick's  command,  charging  them  late  in  the 
afternoon  of  May  4,  and  driving  them  so  that,  before  day- 
break, they  had  retreated  across  the  river.  Then,  turning 
back  to  attack  Hooker,  he  found  the  latter  also  crossing  the 
river. 

Unique  in  the  history  of  battles  are  the  two  monuments 
which  stand  near  Salem  Church,  erected  by  the  State  of  New 
Jersey  and  gallantly  uttering  praise  of  friend  and  foe. 

They  mark  the  farthest  advance  of  the  Xew  Jersey  troops. 
The  first,  on  the  right  of  the  Plank  Road  as  one  goes  from 
Fredericksburg  to  Chancellorsville,  is  a  monument  to  the  Fif- 
teenth  Xew  Jersey  troops  and  one  one  side  is  inscribed: 

"The  survivors  of  the  Fifteenth  Xew  Jersey  Infantry  honor  their 
comrades  who  bore  themselves  bravely  in  this  contest,  and  hear  witness 
to  the  valor  of   the  men   who  opposed  them   on   this   field." 

62 


Monument  at  Salon  Church 

The  other  monument  stands  on  the  ridge  at  Salem 
Church,  close  to  the  road,  and  about  where  the  charge  of  the 
Twenty-third  New  Jersey  shattered  itself  against  the  thin 
lines  of  Wilcox's  Alabamians.  It  stands  just  where  these  two 
bodies  of  troops  fought  hand  to  hand  amidst  a  rolling  fire  of 
musketry,  bathing  the  ground  in  blood.  In  the  end  the  Con- 
federates prevailed,  but  when  the  State  of  New  Jersey  erected 
the  monument  they  did  not  forget  their  foe.  It  is  the  only 
monument  on  a  battlefield  that  pays  homage  alike  to  friend  and 
enemy. 

The  monument  was  unveiled  in  1907,  Governor  E.  Bird 
Gubb,  who  led  the  Twenty-third  New  Jersey,  being  the  prin- 
cipal speaker.     Thousands  were  present  at  the  ceremonies. 

On  one  side  of  the  splendid  granite  shaft  is  a  tablet,  on 
which  is  engraved: 

"To  the  memory  of  our  heroic  comrades  who   gave  their  lives   for 
their  country's  unity  on  this  battlefield,  this  tablet  is  dedicated." 

And  on  the  other  side  another  tablet  is  inscribed : 

"To  the  brave  Alabama  boys,  our  opponents  on  this  battlefield,  whose 
memory  we  honor,  this  tablet  is  dedicated." 


63 


Two  Great  Battles 

The Jearful  fire  sivept  Wilderness,  and  the  Bloody  Angle 
at  Spottsyluania 

After  Chancellorsville,  the  Confederate  Army  invaded  the 
North,  and  Hooker  left  the  Stafford  Hills  to  follow  Lee  into 
Pennsylvania.  When  Gettysburg  was  over,  both  armies  came 
back  to  face  each  other  along  the  Rappahannock,  twenty  to 
thirty  miles  above  Fredericksburg. 

Now,  Chancellorsville  is  in  a  quiet  tract  of  scrub  pine 
woods,  twelve  miles  west  of  Fredericksburg.  The  Plank  Road 
and  the  Turnpike  run  toward  it  and  meet  there,  only  to  diverge 
three  miles  or  so  west,  and  six  miles  still  further  west  (from 
Chancellorsville)  the  two  roads  cross  Wilderness  Run  —  the 
Turnpike  crosses  near  Wilderness  Tavern,  the  Plank  Road 
about  five  miles  southward. 

Two  miles  from  Wilderness  Tavern  on  the  Turnpike  is 
Mine  Run.  Here  General  Meade,  now  commanding  the  North- 
ern Army,  moved  his  forces,  and  on  December  I,  1863,  the  two 
armies  were  entrenched.  But  after  skirmishes,  Meade,  who 
had  started  toward  Richmond,  decided  not  to  fight  and  re- 
treated with  the  loss  of  1,000  men. 

In  the  spring  General  Grant,  now  commander-in-chief, 
began  to  move  from  the  vicinity  of  Warrenton,  and  on  May 
4,  1864,  his  vast  army  was  treading  the  shadowed  roads 
through  the  Wilderness.  It  was  one  of  the  greatest  armies 
that  has  ever  been  engaged  in  mobile  warfare;  for,  by  official 
records,  Grant  had   141,000  men. 

Lee's  army  —  he  had  now  64,000  men  —  was  moving  in 
three  columns  from  the  general  direction  of  Culpeper. 

Grant  intended  to  get  between  Lee  and  Richmond,  but 
he  failed,  for  the  Confederate  commander  met  him  in  the 
tangled  Wilderness,  and  one  of  the  most  costly  battles  of  the 

64 


"General  Lee  to  the  Rear' 

war  began  —  a  battle  than  can  barely  be  touched  on  here,  for, 
iought  as  it  was  in  the  woods,  the  lines  wavering-  and  shifting 
and  the  attack  now  from  one  side,  now  from  the  other,  it 
became  so  involved  that  a  volume  is  needed  to  tell  the  story. 

It  is  sufficient  to  say  that  the  first  heavy  fighting  began 
along  the  Turnpike  near  Wilderness  Run,  on  May  4  and  5, 
and  that  shortly  afterwards  the  lines  were  heavily  engaged 
on  each  side  of,  and  parallel  to,  the  Plank  Road.  Northward, 
on  the  Germanna  road,  charges  and  countercharges  were  made, 
and  on  May  6,  Sedgwick's  line  finally  broke  and  gave  ground 
before  a  spirited  charge  by  part  of  Ewell's  corps  —  the  bri- 
gades of  Gordon,  Johnston  and  Pegram  doubling  up  that 
flank. 

The  Northern  left  (on  the  Plank  Road),  which  had 
been  driven  back  once,  rallied  on  the  morning  of  May  6,  and 
in  a  counter-attack  threatened  disaster  to  the  Confederates 
under  Heth  and  Wilcox  who  (this  was  in  the  forenoon)  were 
driven  back  by  a  terrific  charge  from  the  Federal  lines  near 
Brock  Road.  Expected  for  hours,  Longstreet's  march-worn 
men  came  up  at  this  critical  moment  along  Plank  Road.  Head- 
ing this  column  that  had  been  moving  since  midnight  was  a  bri- 
gade of  Texans  and  toward  these  General  Lee  rode,  calling: 

"What  troops  are  these?" 

The  first  answer  was  simply : 

"Texans,  General." 

*'My  brave  Texas  boys,  you  must  charge.  You  must 
drive  those  people  back,"  the  Confederate  commander  said,  so 
earnestly  that  the  Texas  troops  began  to  form  while  Lee  per- 
sonally rallied  the  men  who  by  now  were  pouring  back  from  the 
front.  Then  as  Longstreet's  men  began  to  go  forward  Lee 
rode  with  them  until  the  line  paused  while  the  cry  arose  from 
all  directions  "General  Lee,  go  to  the  rear.  Lee  to  the  rear." 
Officers  seized  his  bridle.  "If  you  will  go  to  the  rear,  General," 
said  an  officer  waving  his  hand  toward  the  lines  "these  men 
will  drive  'those  people'  back."     His  promise  was  made  good, 

6a 


Grants  Advance  Defeated 

for  as  Lee  drew  back,  Longstreet's  men  —  General  Longstreet 
himself  had  now  reached  the  head  of  the  column  —  rushed 
through  the  woods,  driving  the  advancing  Federals  back,  and 
piercing  their  lines  in  two  places.  Before  a  second  and  heavier 
assault  the  whole  line  fell  back  to  entrenchments  in  front  of 
Brock  Road,  and  soon  the  junction  of  that  road  and  Plank 
Road  was  within  Longstreet's  reach,  and  the  Northern  line 
threatened  with  irretrievable  disaster. 

And  now,  for  the  second  time,  just  as  a  great  victory  was 
at  hand,  the  Southern  troops  shot  their  leader.  ,  General  Long- 
street  was  advancing  along  the  Plank  Road  with  General  Jen- 
kins, at  the  head  of  the  latter's  troops,  when  —  mistaken  for 
a  body  of  the  enemy  —  they  were  fired  into.  General  Long- 
street  was  seriously  wounded,  General  Jenkins  killed,  and  the 
forward  movement  was  checked  for  several  hours,  during 
which  the  Federals  reinforced  the  defenses  at  the  junction. 

At  night  of  May  6  Grant  had  been  defeated  of  his  pur- 
pose, his  army  driven  back  over  a  mile  along  a  front  of  four 
miles,  and  terrific  losses  inflicted  —  for  he  lost  in  the  Wilder- 
ness 17,666  men,  while  the  Confederate  losses  were  10,641. 
General  Hays  (Federal)  was  killed  near  the  junction  of  Plank 
and  Brock  Roads. 

Fire  now  raged  through  the  tangled  pines  and  out  of 
the  smoke  through  the  long  night  came  the  screams  of  the 
wounded,  who  helplessly  waited  the  coming  of  the  agonizing 
flames.  Thousands  of  mutilated  men  lay  there  for  hours  and 
hours  feeling  the  heated  breath  of  that  which  was  coming 
to  devour  them,  helpless  to  move,  while  the  fire  swept  on 
through  the  underbrush  and  dead  leaves. 

The  battle  had  no  result.  Grant  was  badly  defeated, 
but,  unlike  Burnside,  Hooker  and  Meade,  he  did  not  retreat 
across  the  Rappahannock.  Instead,  pursuing  his  policy  and 
figuring  that  140,000  men  against  60.000  men  could  fight 
until  they  killed  the  60.000,  themselves  loosing  two  to  one, 
and  still  have  20.000  left,  he  moved  "by  the  flank." 

66 


The  Day  of  ''Bloody  Angle" 

By  the  morning  of  May  8  Grant's  army,  moving  by  the 
rear,  was  reaching  Spotsylvania  Court  House  by  the  Brock 
Road  and  the  Chancellorsville  Road.  General  Lee  has  no 
road  to  move  on.  But  on  the  night  of  May  7  his  engineers 
cut  one  through  the  Wilderness  to  Shady  Grove  Church  and 
his  advance  guard  moving  over  this  intercepted  Warren's 
corps  two  miles  from  the  Court  House  and  halted  the  advance. 
By  the  night  of  May  8,  Lee's  whole  army  was  in  a  semi-circle, 
five  or  six  miles  in  length,  about  the  Court  House.  The  cen- 
ter faced  northward  and  crossed  the  Fredericksburg  Road. 

Grant  attacked  feebly  on  May  10,  and  again  on  May  11, 
and  because  of  the  lightness  of  these  attacks  Lee  believed 
Grant  would  again  move  "by  the  flank"  toward  Richmond. 
But  before  dawn  on  May  12  Hancock's  corps  struck  the  apex 
of  a  salient  just  beyond  the  Court  House,  breaking  the  lines 
and  capturing  General  Edward  Johnson  and  staff  and  1,200 
men. 

In  this  salient,  now  known  as  the  "Bloody  Angle," 
occurred  one  of  the  most  terrible  hand-to-hand  conflicts  of 
modern  warfare.  From  dawn  to  dawn,  in  the  area  of  some 
500  acres  which  the  deep  and  well-fortified  trenches  of  the 
angle  enclosed,  more  than  60,000  men  fought  that  day.  Artil- 
lery could  hardly  be  used,  because  of  the  mixture  of  the 
lines,  but  nowhere  in  the  war  was  such  rifle  fire  known.  The 
Northern  forces  broke  the  left  of  the  salient,  took  part  of 
the  right,  and,  already  having  the  apex,  pushed  their  troops 
through.    The1  lines  swayed,  advancing  and  retreating  all  day. 

Toward  evening  the  gallant  Gordan  advancing  from  base 
line  of  the  Angle,  with  his  whole  command  pouring  in  rifle  fire, 
but  mostly  using  the  bayonet,  drove  back  the  Federals  slowly, 
and  at  night  the  Confederates  held  all  except  the  apex.  But 
General  Lee  abandoned  the  salient  after  dark,  and  put  his 
whole  force  in  the  base  line.  Here  General  Grant  hesitated 
to  attack  him. 

All  along  the  lines  about  Spotsylvania  desperate  fighting 
occurred  that  day,  but  the  battle  was  distinctly  a  draw.     Both 

67 


Our  Part  in  Other  Wars 

armies  lay  in  their  trenches,  now  and  then  skirmishing,  until 
May  18,  when  Grant  withdrew,  again  moving  "by  the  flank," 
this  time  toward  Milford,  on  the  R.,  F.  &  P.   Railroad. 

Near  the  Bloody  Angle,  on  the  Brock  Road,  where  it 
is  intersected  by  a  cross  road,  General  Sedgwick  was  killed 
by  a  sharpshooter  concealed  in  a  tree.  He  fell  from  his  horse, 
and  although  his  aides  summoned  medical  help  he  died  almost 
immediately.  The  tree  from  which  it  is  said  the  sharpshooter 
killed  him  is  still  standing. 

General  Lee  had  at  Spotsylvania  about  55,000  men  and 
General  Grant  about   124,000. 

The  Federal  loss  was  15,577.  The  Confederate  loss  was 
11,578.  A  large  part  of  these,  probably  15,000,  fell  in  the 
Bloody  Angle.*  

In  the  War  of  18 12  only  one  company  was  formed  here, 
commanded  by  Colonel  Hamilton.  This  company  did  really 
very  little  service.  The  fear  that  the  enemy  would  come  up 
the  Rappahannock  River  to  attack  this  place  was  never  realized. 


In  the  war  with  Mexico  it  is  not  recorded  that  any  dis- 
tinctive company  was  enrolled  here,  although  a  number  of  its 
young  men  enlisted,  and  one  of  the  Masons  of  Gunston  was 
the  first  man  killed,  in  the  ambush  of  the  First  Dragoons  on 
the  Mexican  border.  General  Daniel  Ruggles  won  honor  in 
this  war.  

In  the  Civil  War,  every  man,  "from  the  cradle  to  the 
grave,"  went  to  the  front  voluntarily  and  cheerfully  for  the 
cause.  They  could  be  found  in  such  commands  as  the  Thirtieth 
Virginia  Regiment  of  Infantry,  commanded  by  Colonel  Robert 
S.  Chew,  in  which,  among  the  many  officers  were:  Hugh 
S.  Doggett,  Robert  T.  Know,  James  S.  Knox,  Fdgar  Crutch- 
field.  John  K.  Anderson,  Fdward  Hunter,  Thomas  F.  Proctor 
and  many  others.  Of  these  it  is  sufficient  to  say  that  at  all 
times  they  loyally  did  their  duty,  and  this  may  also  be  said 
*-Figurc?,   sec  official  reports. 

G8 


In  the  Great  World  War 

of  the  Fredericksburg  Artillery,  sometimes  called  Braxton's 
Battery,  among  the  officers  of  which  were  Carter  Braxton, 
Edward  Marye,  John  Pollock,  John  Eustace  and  others 
Some  of  "our  boys"  united  themselves  with  the  "Bloody 
Ninth"  Virginia  Cavalry,  commanded  by  that  prince  of  cal- 
varimen,  Colonel  Thomas  W.  Waller,  of  Stafford.  Others  of 
the  town,  voluntarily  enlisted  in  many  other  branches. 

Charles  T.  Goolrick  commanded  a  company  of  infantry 
which  was  organized  and  equipped  by  his  father,  Peter  Gool- 
rick. Later  his  health  gave  way  and  his  brother,  Robert 
Emmett  Goolrick,  a  lieutenant  in  the  company,  took  command. 


When  the  War  with  Spain  was  declared,  the  old  Wash- 
ington Guards,  which  has  done  its  duty  at  all  times  in  the  life 
of  the  town,  came  to  the  front.  Captain  Maurice  B.  Rowe 
was  its  commander  at  that  time;  Revere,  first  lieutenant,  and 
Robert  S.  Knox,  now  of  the  U.  S.  Army,  second  lieutenant. 
It  is  pertinent  to1  state  that  in  the  War  with  Spain  there  was 
no  draft,  and  there  were  more  volunteers  than  there  was  work 
to  do.  The  company  marched  away  with  great  hopes,  but 
spent  almost  the  whole  period  of  the  war  at  Camp  Alger,  near 
Washington. 

When  the  Great  World  War  came  on,  Fredericksburg 
sent  two  organized  companies  to  the  front.  The  first,  the 
Washington  Guards,  under  Captain  Gunyon  Harrison,  and  the 
second,  the  Coast  Artillery  Company,  under  Captain  Johnson. 
No  names  can  be  recorded,  for  after  the  companies  left,  the 
draft  men  went  in  large  bodies,  and  many  won  promotion  and 
distinguished  service  medals. 

On  July  4,  191 8,  the  town  gave  to  the  World  War  sol- 
diers a  sincere  and  royal  "welcome  home,"  in  which  the  people 
testified  to  their  gratitude  to  them.  In  the  war,  our  boys  had 
added  luster  to  the  name  of  the  town,  and  splendid  credit  to 
themselves.  The  joy  of  the  occasion  and  the  pleasure  of  it 
were  marred  by  the  fact  that  so  many  had  died  in  France. 

69 


Heroes  of  Early  Days 

The  Old  Tomun  fives  the  first  Commander,  first  Admiral, 
and  Great  Citizens 

Fredericksburg  claims  George  Washington,  who  although 
born  in  Westmoreland  County,  Virginia,  February  22,  1732, 
spent  most  of  his  boyhood  on  the  "Ferry  Farm,"  the  home  of 
his  father,  Augustine  Washington,  situated  on  a  hill  directly 
opposite  the  wharf  which  juts  out  from  the  Fredericksburg 
side  of  the  river.  Here  it  is  that  Parson  Weems  alleged  he 
threw  a  stone  across  the  river. 

He  was  educated  in  Fredericksburg  and  Falmouth,  a 
village  of  gray  mists  and  traditions,  which  lords  it  over  Fred- 
ericksburg in  the  matter  of  quaintness  and  antiquity,  but  oblig- 
ingly joins  its  fortunes  to  those  of  the  town  by  a  long  and 
picturesque  bridge. 

His  tutor  in  Falmouth  was  a  "Master  Hobbie,"  and  while 
this  domine  was  "strapping  the  unthinking  end  of  boys," 
George  was  evading  punishment  by  being  studious  and 
ol>edient.  He  also  attended  the  school  of  Mr.  Marye,  at  St. 
George's  Church.  It  was  in  this  church  that  the  Washing- 
tons  worshipped. 

Shy  in  boyhood  and  eclectic  in  the  matter  of  associates, 
he  had   the  genius   for  real   friendships. 

The  cherry  tree  which  proclaimed  him  a  disciple  of  truth 
has  still  a  few  flourishing  descendants  on  the  old  farm,  and 
often  one  sees  a  tourist  cherishing  a  twig  as  a  precious  souve- 
nir of  the  ground  hallowed  by  the  tread  i^\  America's  most 
famous  son.  It  was  on  this  farm  that  George  was  badly 
hurt  while  riding  (without  permission)  his  father's  chestnut 
colt. 

We  take  Washington's  career  almost  for  granted,  as  we 
watch  the  -tars  without  marveling  at  the  forces  that  drive  them 

70 


Washington's  Boyhood  Home 

on,  but  when  we  do  stop  to  think,  we  are  sure  to  wonder  at 
the  substantial  greatness,  the  harnessed  strength  of  will,  the 
sagacity  and  perception,  which  made  him  the  man  he  was. 

He  left  school  at  sixteen,  after  having  mastered  geometry 
and  trigonometry,  and  having  learned  to  use  logarithms. 

He  became  a  surveyor.  His  brother,  Lawrence,  who  at  that 
time  owned  Mt.  Vernon,  recognized  this ;  in  fact,  got  him,  in 
1740,  to  survey  those  wild  lands  in  the  valley  of  the  Alle- 
ghany belonging  to  Lord  Fairfax. 

He  was  given  a  commission  as  public  surveyor  after  this. 
It  is  hard  to  realize  that  he  was  only  sixteen!  We  will  not 
attempt  to'  dwell  upon  his  life  in  detail.  We  know  that  at 
nineteen  he  was  given  a  military  district,  with  the  rank  of 
major,  in  order  to  meet  the  dangers  of  Indian  depredations 
and  French  encroachments.  His  salary  was  only  150  pounds 
a  year. 

On  November  4,  1752,  he  was  made  a  Mason  in  Fred- 
ericksburg Lodge,  No.  4.  The  Bible  used  in  these  interesting 
ceremonies,  is  still  in  possession  of  the  lodge,  and  is  in  a  fine 
state  of  preservation.  Washington  continued  a  member  of 
this  lodge  until  he  died,  and  Lafayette  was  an  honorary  mem- 
ber. 

At  twenty-one,  as  a  man  of  "discretion,  accustomed  to 
travel,  and  familiar  with  the  manners  of  the  Indians,"  he 
was  sent  by  Governor  Dinwiddie  on  a  delicate  mission  which 
involved  encroachments  by  the  French  on  property  claimed  by 
the  English.  During  all  these  years  he  came  at  close  intervals 
to  visit  his  mother,  now  living  in  her  own  house  in  Fredericks- 
burg, which  was  still  his  home. 

After  his  distinguished  campaign  against  the  French  army 
under  M.  De  Jumonville  in  the  region  of  Ohio,  where  he 
exposed  himself  with  the  most  reckless  bravery,  he  came  to 
Mt.  Vernon  which  he  inherited  from  his  brother,  Augustus, 
married  Martha  Custis,  a  young  widow  with  two  children  and 
large  landed  estates,  and  became  a  member  of  the  House  of 
Burgesses,  punctually  attending  all  the  sessions. 


When  "George"  got  Arrested 

Indeed,  one  finds  oneself  eagerly  looking-  for  an  occa- 
sional lapse  in  this  epic  oi  punctuality.  It  would  humanize 
him.  Anyway,  one  is  glad  to  see  that  he  was  a  patron  of  the 
arts  and  the  theatre,  and  his  industry  in  keeping  day-books, 
letter-books,  contracts  and  deeds  is  somewhat  offset  by  the 
fact  that  he  played  the  flute. 

He  seldom  spoke  in  the  1  louse  of  Burgesses,  but  his 
opinion  was  eagerly  sought  and  followed.  We  will  pass  over 
the  time  when  Dunmore  prorogued  the  "House,"  and  of  the 
events  which  ended  in  Washington's  being  made  Commander- 
in-Chief  of  the  Continental  Army. 

We  are,  perhaps,  more  interested  in  another  visit  to  Fred- 
ericksburg to  see  his  mother,  after  lie  had  resigned  his  com- 
mission. From  town  and  country,  his  friends  gathered  to 
give  him  welcome  and  do  him  honor.  'The  military  turned 
out,   civic   societies   paraded,   and   cannon   boomed. 

In  between  his  career  as  statesmen  and  as  soldier,  we 
strain  our  eyes  for  a  thread  of  color,  and  we  discover  that  he 
was  once  brought  before  a  justice  of  the  peace  and  fined  for 
trading  horses  on  Sunday.  And  again,  that  he  was  sum- 
moned before  the  grand  jury  and  "'George  William  Fairfax, 
George  Washington,  George  Mason,"  and  half  dozen  others 
were  indicted  for  "not  reporting  their  wheeled  vehicles,  accord- 
ing t<  >  law." 

It  is  worth  noting,  to,.,  that  while  her  son,  George,  was 
leading  the  American  armv,  Marv,  his  mother,  was  a  partisan 
of  the  King;  a  tory  most  openly.  "1  am  sure  1  shall  hear  some 
day,"  She  told  some  one.  calmly,  in  her  garden,  "that  they 
have  hung  Ge<  >rge." 

Nevertheless,  his  first  two  messages,  after  he  crossed  the 
Delaware  and  won  signal  victories,  were  to  Congress  and  his 
mother.  And  after  the  hard-riding  courier  had  handed  her 
the  note,  and  the  gathering  people  had  waited  until  she  laid 
down  her  trowel,  and  wiped  the  garden  earth  from  her  hands, 
she  turned  to  them  and  said:  "Well,  George  has  crossed  the 
Delaware  and  defeated  the  King's  troops  at  Trenton." 


Washington  Advises  Lovers 


\s 


The  stern  fact  of  the  Revolution,  which  cast  upon  George 
Washington  immortal  fame  and  which  was  followed  by  his 
election  to  the  Presidency  of  the  United  States,  is  softened 
somewhat  by  a  letter  on  love  written  to  his  daughter,  Nellie 
Custis.     A  few  excerpts  are  as  follows: 

"When  the  fire  is  beginning  to  kindle,  and  the  heart  grow- 
ing warm,  propound  these  questions  to  it.  Who  is  this  invader? 
Is  he  a  man  of  character;  a  man  of  sense?  For  be  assured, 
a  sensible  woman  can  never  be  happy  with  a  fool.  Is  his  for- 
tune sufficient  to  maintain  me  in  the  manner  I  have  been  accus- 
tomed to  live?  And  is  he  one  to  whom  my  friends  can  have 
no  reasonable  objection?" 

And  again,  "It  would  be  no  great  departure  from  the 
truth  to  say  that  it  rarely  happens  otherwise  than  that  a 
thorough  paced  coquette  dies  in  celibacy,  as  a  punishment  for 
her  attempts  to  mislead  others  by  encouraging  looks,  words 
and  actions,  given  for  no  other  purpose  than  to  draw  men  on 
to  make  overtures  that  they  may  be  rejected." 

The  letter  ends  with  a  blessing  bestowed  on  the  young 
lady  to  whom  is  given  such  sensible  advice.  That  this  letter 
is  characterized  by  an  admirable  poise,  cannot  be  denied. 

George  Washington  died  at  Mt.  Vernon,  December  4, 
1799.  He  upheld  the  organization  of  the  American  state 
during  the  first  eight  years  of  its  existence,  amid  the  storms 
of  interstate  controversy,  and  gave  it  time  to  consolidate. 

No  other  American  but  himself  could  have  done  this  — 
for  of  all  the  American  leaders  he  was  the  only  one  whom  men 
felt  differed  from  themselves.  The  rest  were  soldiers, 
civilians,  Federalists  or  Democrats,  but  he  —  was  Washington. 

Almost  immediately  after  appearing  before  the  public 
session  of  Congress,  at  which  he  resigned  his  commission  as 
commander-in-chief  of  the  Continental  armies,  an  act  of 
which  Thackeray  speaks  as  sheathing  his  sword  after  "a  life 
of  spotless  honor,  a  purity  unreproached,  a  courage  indomitable 
and  a  consummate  victory,"  Washington  came  to  Fredericks- 

73 


Evidence  of  Citizenship 

burg  to  visit  his  mother.  He  was  the  great  hero  of 
the  age,  the  uncrowned  King  of  America  and  from  all  over 
the  section  crowds  flocked  to  do  him  honor.  The  occasion  was 
of  such  importance  that  the  city  did  not  trust  the  words  of 
welcome  to  a  single  individual,  but  called  a  meeting  of  the 
City  Council  at  which  a  short  address  was  adopted  and  pre- 
sented to  Washington  upon  his  arrival  by  William  McWil- 
liams,  then  mayor. 

While  beautifully  worded  to  show  the  appreciation  of  his 
services  and  respect  for  his  character  and  courage,  the 
address  of  welcome  contains  nothing  of  historical  significance 
except  the  line  "And  it  affords  us  great  joy  to  see  you  once 
more  at  a  place  which  claims  the  honor  of  your  growing 
infancy,  the  seat  of  your  amiable  parent  and  worthy  relatives," 
which  establishes  Washington's  connection  with  Fredericks- 
burg. 

In   reply.   General   Washington   said : 

Gentlemen  : 

With  the  greatest  pleasure  I  receive  in  the  character  of  a  private 
citizen  the  honor  of  your  address.  To  a  henevolent  providence  and  the 
fortitude  of  a  brave  and  virtuous  army,  supported  by  the  general  exertion 
of  our  common  country,  I  stand  indebted  for  the  plaudits  you  now  bestow. 
The  reflection,  however,  of  having  met  the  congratulating  smiles  and 
approbation  of  my  fellow  citizens  for  the  part  I  have  acted  in  the  cause 
of  Liberty  and  Independence  cannot  fail  of  adding  pleasure  to  the  other 
sweets  of  domestic  life;  and  my  sense  of  them  is  heightened  by  their 
coming  from  the  respectable  inhabitants  of  the  place  of  my  growing 
infancy  and  the  honorable  mention  which  is  made  of  my  'revered 
mother,  by  whose  maternal  hand,  (early  deprived  of  a  father)  I  was 
led  to  manhood.  For  the  expression  of  personal  affection  and  attachment, 
and  for  your  kind  wishes  for  my  future  welfare,  I  offer  grateful  thanks 
and  my  sincere  pravers  for  the  happiness  and  prosperity  of  the  corporate 
town    of     Fredericksburg. 

Signed:      George    Washington. 

This  address  is  recorded  in  the  books  ni  the  town  council 
and  is  signed  in  a  handwriting  that  looks  like  that  of  Wash- 
ington. 

As  it  is  known  that  Washington  lived  at  Fredericksburg 
from    the    time   he    was   about    six   years    of   age    until    early 

74 


The  Story  of  John  Paul 

manhood,  the  expression  "growing  infancy"  is  unfortunate, 
but  later,  when  Mayor  Robert  Lewis,  a  nephew  of  Washington, 
delivered  the  welcome  address  to  General  Lafayette  when  he 
visited  Fredricksburg  in  1824  the  real  case  was  made  more 
plain  when  he  said : 

"The  presence  of  the  friend  of  Washington  excites  the  tenderest 
emotions  and  associations  among  a  people  whose  town  enjoys  the  dis- 
tinguished honor  of  having  been  the  residence  of  the  Father  of  his 
Country  during  the  days  of  his  childhood  and  youth,"  and  in  reply 
General  Lafayette  said : 

"At  this  place,  Sir,  which  calls  to  our  recollections  several  among  the 
most  honored  names  of  the  Revolutionary  War,  I  did,  many  years  ago, 
salute  the  first  residence  of  our  paternal  chief,  receiving  the  blessings  of 
his  venerated  mother  and  of  his  dear  sister,  your  own  respected  mother." 
Later  the  same  day,  at  a  banquet  in  the  evening,  given  in  his  honor, 
Lafayette  offered  the  following  sentiment,  "The  City  of  Fredericksburg  — 
first  residence  of  Washington  —  may  she  more  and  more  attain  all  the 
prosperity  which  independence,  republicanism  and  industry  cannot  fail 
to  secure." 

John  Paul  Jones. 

Of  ail  the  men  whose  homes  were  in  Fredericksburg, 
none  went  forth  to  greater  honor  nor  greater  ignominy  than 
John  Paul  Jones,  who  raised  the  first  American  flag  on  the 
masthead  of  his  ship,  died  in  Paris  and  was  buried  and  slept 
for  113  years  beneath  a  filthy  stable  yard,  forgotten  by  the 
country  he  valiantly  served. 

He  came  to  Fredericksburg  early  in  1760  on  "The  Friend- 
ship," as  a  boy  of  thirteen  years.  Born  in  a  lowly  home,  he  was 
a  mere  apprentice  seaman,  and  without  doubt  he  deserted  his 
ship  in  those  days,  when  sea  life  was  a  horror,  to  come  to 
Fredericksburg  and  join  his  brother,  William  Paul,  whose 
home  was  here,  and  who  is  buried  here.  There  is  some  record 
of  his  having  been  befriended  by  a  man  in  Carolina,  and  tradi- 
tions that  he  left  his  ship  in  a  port  on  the  Rappahannock  after 
killing  a  sailor,  and  walked  through  the  wilderness  to  Freder- 
icksburg. Neither  tradition  is  of  importance ;  the  fact  is  that 
he  came  here  and  remained  four  years  during  the  developing 
period  of  his  life. 

75 


Jones'  American  Home  Here 

William  Paul  had  immigrated  to  Fredericksburg  from  the 
Parish  of  Kirkbeam,  Scotland,  (where  he  and  his  brother, 
John,  were  horn),  about  1760,  had  come  to  Fredericksburg 
and  conducted  a  grocery  store  and  tailor  simp  on  the  corner 
of  Caroline  and  Prussia  streets.  William  died  here  in  1773. 
and  is  buried  in  St.  George's  Church  Yard.  In  his  will  he 
left  his  property  to  sisters  in  the  Parish  of  Kirkbeam,  Scot- 
land. 

Alexander  McKenzie,  in  his  life  of  John  Paul  Jones,  says, 
after  referring  to  the  fact  that  William  Paul  is  buried  in  Fred- 
ericksburg: "In  1773  he  went  hack  to  Fredericksburg  to 
arrange  the  affairs  of  his  brother,  William  Paul,''  and  John 
Paul  Jones  himself  wrote  of  Fredericksburg:  "It  was  the  home 
of  my  fond  election  since  first  1  saw  it."  The  Legislature  of 
Virginia  decided  in  settling  William  Paul's  estate  that  John 
Paul  Jones  was  a  legal  resident  of  Fredericksburg. 

Obviously,  then,  Fredericksburg  was  the  great  Admiral's 
home,  for,  though  not  born  here,  he  chose  it  when  he  came  to 
America. 

When  he  first  reached  the  little  town  on  the  Rappahannock 
he  went  to  work  for  his  brother,  William  Paul  and  one  can 
surmise  that  he  clerked  and  carried  groceries  and  messages  to 
the  gentry  regarding  their  -miart  clothes  for  his  brother. 

The  Rising  Sun  Tavern  was  then  a  gathering  place  for 
the  gentry  and  without  doubt  he  saw  them  there.  He  may 
well  have  learned  good  manners  from  their  ways,  good  lan- 
guage from  hearing  their  conversation  and  "sedition"  from 
the  great  who  gathered  there.  We  may  picture  the  lowly  boy, 
lingering  in  the  background  while  the  gentlemen  talked  and 
drank  punch  around  Mine  Host  Weedon's  great  fire,  or  lis- 
tening eagerly  at  the  counter  where  the  tavern-keeper,  who  was 
to  he  a  Major-General,  delivered  the  mail. 

Certainly  John  Paul  Jones  was  a  lowly  and  uneducated 
boy  at  r^.  He  left  Fredericksburg  after  four  vears  to  go  to 
sea  again,  and  in  1773  came  hack  to  settle  his  brother's  estate, 
and  remained  here  until  December  _>_>.  1775.  when  he  received 
at  Fredericksburg  his  commission  in  the  Xavv. 

/6 


From  Cabin  Boy  to  Courtier 

John  Paul  Jones'  story  is  more  like  romance  than  history. 
Beginning  an  uncouth  lad,  he  became  a  sea  fighter  whose 
temerity  outranks  all.  We  see  him  aboard  the  Bonhomme 
Richard,  a  poor  thing  for  seafaring,  fighting  the  Serapis  just 
off  British  shores,  half  of  his  motley  crew  of  French  and 
Americans  dying  or  dead  about  him,  the  scruppers  running 
blood,  mad  carnage  raging,  and  when  he  is  asked  if  he  is  ready 
to  surrender  he  says:  "I've  just  begun  to  fight,"  and  by  his 
will  forcing  victory  out  of  defeat.  He  was  the  only  American 
who  fought  the  English  on  English  soil.  He  never  walked  a 
decent  quarter  deck,  but  with  the  feeble  instruments  he  had, 
he  captured  sixty  superior  vessels.  His  ideal  of  manliness  was 
courage. 

What  of  this  Fredericksburg  gave  him  no  one  may  say, 
but  it  is  sure  that  the  chivalry,  grace  and  courtliness  which 
admitted  him  in  later  years  to  almost  every  court  in  Europe 
was  absorbed  from  the  gentry  in  Virginia.  He  did  not  learn 
it  on  merchantmen  or  in  his  humble  Scotch  home,  and  so 
he  learned  it  here.     Of  him  the  Duchess  de  Chartres  wrote : 

"Not  Bayard,  nor  Charles  le  Temeaire  could  have  laid  his 
helmet  at  a  lady's  feet  with  such  knightly  grace." 

He  won  his  country's  high  acclaim,  but  it  gave  him  no 
substantial  evidence.  He  was  an  Admiral  in  the  Russian  Navy, 
and  after  a  time  he  went  to  Paris  to  live  a  few  years  in  pov- 
erty, neglect,  and  bitterness.  He  died  and  was  buried  in  Paris 
in  1792,  at  45  years  of  age. 

He  was  a  dandy,  this  John  Paul  Jones,  who  walked  the 
streets  of  Fredericksburg  in  rich  dress.  Lafayette,  Jefferson, 
and,  closest  of  all,  the  Scotch  physician,  Hugh  Mercer,  were 
his  friends.  Slender  and  not  tall,  black-eyed  and  swarthy,  with 
sensitive  eyes,  and  perfect  mouth  and  chin,  he  won  the  love 
or  friendship  of  women  quicker  than  that  of  men. 

He  was  buried  in  an  old  graveyard  in  Paris  and  forgotten 
until  the  author  of  this  book  wrote  for  newspapers  a  series  of 

77 


Admiral  Jones'  Surgeon 

letters  about  him.  Interest  awoke  and  Ambassador  Porter 
was  directed  to  search  for  his  body.  How  utterly  into  oblivion 
had  slipped  the  youth  who  ventured  far,  and  conquered  always, 
is  plain  when  it  is  known  that  it  took  the  Ambassador  six 
years  to  find  the  body  of  Commodore  John  Paul  Jones.  He 
found  it  in  an  old  cemetery  where  bodies  were  heaped  three 
deep  under  the  courtyard  of  a  stable  and  a  laundry. 

Surgeon  Laurens  Brooke 

Surgeon  Laurens  Brooke,  was  born  in  Fredericksburg, 
in  1720,  and  was  one  of  those  who  accompanied  Governor 
Spottswood  as  a  Knight  of  the  Golden  Horseshoe.  'He  after- 
wards lived  in  Fredericksburg,  entered  the  U.  S.  Navy  as  a 
surgeon  and  sailed  with  John  Paul  Jones  on  the  "Ranger" 
and  on  the  "Bon  Homme  Richard.''  At  the  famous  battle  of 
Scarborough,  between  the  latter  vessel  and  the  "Serapis,"  Sur- 
geon Brooke  alone  had  the  care  of  one  hundred  and  twenty 
wounded  sailors;  and  later  with  Surgeon  Edgerly,  of  the 
English  navy,  from  the  Tempis,  performed  valiant  work  and 
saved  many  lives.  The  surgeons  were  honored  by  Captain 
Paul  Jones  with  a  place  at  his  mjess,  and  the  literature  of  the 
period  refers  to  Surgeon  Brooke  as  the  "good  old  Doctor 
Laurens  Brooke."  He  was  with  Jones  until  the  end  of  the 
war  and  spent  some  time  at  his  home  here  when  a  very  old 
man,  some  years  after  the  Revolution.  His  family  had  a  dis- 
tinguished part  in  the  War  Between  the  States,  being  repre- 
sented in  the  army  and  in  the  C.  S.  Congress  during  that 
period. 

General  Hugh  Mercer 

We  wonder  if  any  one  ever  declined  to  take  the  advice  of 
George  Washington. 

Certain  it  is  that  General  Hugh  Mercer  did  not,  for,  at 
the  suggestion  of  Washington,  Mercer  came  to  Fredericks- 
burg. Many  Scotchmen  have  found  the  town  to  their  liking.  It 
makes  them  feel  a  sort  of  kinship  with  the  country  of  hill- 
shadows,   and    strange   romance. 


Major  General  Hugh  Mercer 

Mercer  was  born  in  Aberdeen  in  the  year  1725.  His 
father  was  a  clergyman;  his  mother,  a  daughter  of  Sir  Robert 
Munro,  who,  after  distinguishing  himself  at  Fontenoy  and 
elsewhere,  was  killed  at  the  battle  of  Falkirk,  while  opposing 
the  young  "Pretender."  Hugh  Mercer  did  not  follow  in 
the  footsteps  of  his  father,  but  linked  his  fortunes  with 
Charles  Edward's  army,  as  assistant  surgeon,  fought  with 
him  at  Culloden  and  shared  the  gloom  of  his  defeat  —  a 
defeat  which  was  not  less  bitter  because  his  ears  were  ring- 
ing with  the  victorious  shouts  of  the  army  of  the  Duke  of 
Cumberland. 

To  change  a  scene  that  brought  sad  memories,  Dr.  Hugh 
Mercer,  in  the  fall  of  1746,  embarked  for  America.  There, 
on  the  frontiers  of  civilization,  in  Western  Pennsylvania, 
he  spent  arduous,  unselfish  years.  He  was  welcomed  and 
loved  in  this  unsettled  region  of  scattered  homes. 

A  rough  school  it  was  in  which  the  doctor  learned  the 
lessons  of  life. 

In  the  year  1755,  Mercer  made  his  appearance  in  the 
ill-fated  army  of  Braddock,  which  met  humiliating  disaster 
at  Fort  Duquesne.  Washington's  splendid  career  began 
here  and  here  Mercer  was  wounded.  Of  this  memorable  day  of 
July  9,  1755,  it  has  been  said  that  "The  Continentals  gave 
the  only  glory  to  that   humiliating  disaster." 

In  1756,  while  an  officer  in  a  military  association, 
which  was  founded  to  resist  the  aggression  of  the  French  and 
Indians,  he  was  wounded  and  forced  to  undergo  terrible  pri- 
vations. While  pursued  by  savage  foes  he  sought  refuge 
in  the  trunk  of  a  tree,  around  which  the  Indians  gathered  and 
discussed  the  prospect  of  scalping  him  in  the  near  future. 
When  they  left  he  escaped  in  the  opposite  direction  and  com- 
pletely outwitted  them.  Then  began  a  lonely  march  through 
an  unbroken  forest,  where  he  was  compelled  to  live  on  roots 
and  herbs,  and  where  the  carcass  of  a  rattlesnake  proved 
his  most  nourishing  meal.  He  finally  succeeded  in  rejoin- 
ing his  command   at   Fort   Cumberland.      In   recognition   of 

79 


Mercer  Joins  Masonic  Lodge 

his  sacrifices  and  services  in  these  Indian  wars,  the  Corpora- 
tion of  Philadelphia  presented  him  with  a  note  of  thanks 
and  a  splendid  memorial  medak  In  the  year  1758  he  met 
George  Washington  and  then  it  was  that  Pennsylvania  lost 
a  citizen.  In  Fredericksburg,  at  the  time  that  Mercer  came, 
lived  John  Paul  Jones,  and  we  do  not  doubt  that  they  often 
met  and  talked  of  their  beloved  Scotland. 

During  his  first  years  in  Fredericksburg,  Mercer  occu- 
pied a  small  two-story  house  on  the  southwest  corner  of 
Princess  Anne  and  Amelia  Streets.  There  he  had  his  office 
and  apothecary  shop.     The  building  is  still  standing. 

An  Fnglishman,  writing  at  this  time  of  a  visit  to  Fred- 
ericksburg, calls  Mercer  "a  man  of  great  eminence  and  pos- 
sessed of  almost  every  virtue  and  accomplishment,"  truly  a 
sweeping   appreciation. 

He  belonged  to  Lodge  No.  4,  of  which  Georga  Wash- 
ington was  also  a  member,  and  he  occasionally  paid  a  visit 
to  Mount  Vernon. 

In  September,  1774,  the  Continental  Congress  met  in 
Philadelphia.  The  war  cloud  was  lowering,  it  broke,  and 
when  the  Revolution  swept  the  country,  Mercer  was  elected 
Colonel   of   the   Third    Virginia    Regiment. 

An  approbation  of  the  choice  of  Mercer  was  prepared 
by  the  county  committee,  which  set  forth  the  importance  of 
the  appointment  and  was  an  acknowledgment  of  his  public 
spirit  and  willingness  to  sacrifice  his  life. 

Colonel  Mercer  witii  his  men  and  fifes  and  drums 
marched  away  from  his  home,  bidding  good-bye  to  his  wife 
(Isabella  Gordon),  whom  lie  never  saw  again. 

There  is  an  interesting  story  of  Mercer  at  Williamsburg. 
Among  the  troops  which  were  sent  there  at  that  time,  was 
a  Companv  of  riflemen  from  beyond  the  mountains,  com- 
manded by  a  Captain  Gibson.  A  reckless  and  violent  oppo- 
sition   to    military    restraint    had    gained    for    this    corps    the 

80 


Mercer   Quells   a   Mutiny 

na!me  of  '"Gibson's  Lambs."  After  a  short  time  in  camp, 
a  mutiny  arose  among  them,  causing  much  excitement  in 
the  army,  and  alarming  the  inhabitants  of  the  city.  Free 
from  all  restraint,  they  roamed  through  the  camp,  threaten- 
ing with  instant  death  any  officer  who  .would  presume  to  exer- 
cise any  authority  over  them. 

At  the  height  of  the  mutiny  an  officer  was  dispatched 
with  the  alarming  tidings  to  the  quarters  of  Colonel  Mercer. 
The  citizens  of  the  town  vainly  implored  him  not  to  risk 
his  life  in  this  infuriated  mob. 

Reckless  of  personal  safety,  he  instantly  repaired  to  the 
barracks  of  the,  mutinous  band  and  directing  a  general  parade 
of  the  troops,  he  ordered  Gibson's  company  to  be  drawn  up  as 
offenders  and  violators  of  the  law,  and  to  be  disarmed  in  his 
presence. 

The  ringleaders  were  placed  under  a  strong  guard  and  in 
the  presence  of  the  whole  army  he  addressed  the  offenders 
in  an  eloquent  manner,  impressing  on  them  their  duties  as 
citizens  and  soldiers,  and  the  certainty  of  death  if  they  con- 
tinued to  remain  in  that  mutinous  spirit  equally  disgraceful 
to  them  and  hazardous  to  the  sacred  interests  they  had 
marched  to  defend.  Disorder  was  instantly  checked  and  the 
whole  company  was  ever  afterward  as  efficient  in  deportment 
as  any  troop  in  the  army. 

On  June  5,  1776,  Merceri  was  made  Brigadier-General  in 
the  Continental  Army.  It  was  Mercer  who  suggested  to 
Washington  the  crossing  of  the  Delaware.  Major  Armstrong, 
Mercer's  Aide-de-Camp,  who  was  present  at  a  council  of 
officers,  and  who  was  iwith  Mercer  on  that  fateful  night,  is 
authority  for  this  statement. 

We,  somehow,  see  the  army  of  the  colonists  poorly  clad, 
many  of  them  barefoot,  without  tents,  with  few  blankets,  and 
badly  fed.  In  front  of  them  is  Cornwallis,  with  his  glittering 
hosts,  and  we  can  almost  hear  the  boast  of  General  Howe, 
that  Philadelphia  would  fall  when  the  Delaware  froze.     He 


Death  on  The  Battlefield 

did  not  know  Washington;  and  Mercer's  daring  was  not  reck- 
oned with.  We  wonder  if  ever  a  Christmas  night  was  so 
tilled  with  history  as  that  on  which  Washington,  with  the 
intrepid  Mercer  at  his  side,  pushing  through  that  blinding 
storm  of  snow  and  fighting  his  way  through  the  floating 
ice.  crossed  the  Deleware  with  the  rallying  cry  of  "victory  or 
death,"  and  executed  the  brilliant  move  which  won  for  him 
the  Battle  of  Trenton. 

Near  Princeton,  Washington's  army  was  hemmed  in  by 
Cornwallis  in  front  and  the  Delaware  in  the  rear.  After  a 
consultation  at  Mercer's  headquarters  it  was  determined  to 
withdraw  the  Continental  forces  from  the  front  of  the  enemy 
near  Trenton,  and  attack  the  detachment  then  at  Princeton. 
The  pickets  of  the  two  armies  were  within  two  hundred  yards 
of  each  other.  In  order  to  deceive  the  enemy,  campfires  were 
left  burning  on  Washington's  front  line  and  thus  deceived, 
the  enemy  slept. 

A  woman  guided  the  Continental  army  on  that  night 
march.  A  detachment  of  two  hundred  men,  under  Mercer, 
was  sent  to  seize  a  bridge  at  Worth's  Mill.  The  night  had  been 
dreary;  the  morning  was  severely  cold.  Mercer's  presence  was 
revealed  at  daybreak.  General  Mahood  counter-marched  his 
regiment  and  crossed  the  bridge  at  Worth's  Mill  before  Mercer 
could  reach  it.  The  British  troops  charged.  The  Colonials 
were  driven  back.  General  Mercer  dismounted  and  tried 
vainly  to  rally  his  men.  While  he  was  doing  this,  he  was 
attacked  by  a  group  of  British  troops,  who,  with  the  butts  of 
muskets,  beat  him  down  and  demanded  that  he  surrender.  He 
refused.  He  was  then  bayoneted  and  left  for  dead  on  the 
battlefield.  Stabbed  in  seven  different  places,  he  did  not  expire 
until  January  12.  1777. 

Washington  finallv  won  the  Battle  of  Princeton,  but 
Mercer  was  a  part  of  the  price  he  paid.  The  battles  of  Tren- 
ton and  Princeton  were  the  most  brilliant  victories  in  the 
War  of  the  Revolution. 

82 


Sir  Lewis  Littlepage 


At  Fredericksburg  a  monument  perpetuates  Mercer's 
fame.  At  the  funeral  in  Philadelphia  30,000  people  were 
present,  and  there  his  remains  rest  in  Laurel  Hill  Cemetery. 

The  St.  Andrew's  Society,  which  he  joined  in  1757, 
erected  a  monument  to  his  memory  and  in  the  historical  paint- 
ing of  the  Battle  of  Princeton,  by  Peale  Mercer  is  given  a 
prominent  place.  The  states  of  Pennsylvania,  Kentucky,  Vir- 
ginia and  New  Jersey  have,  by  an  act  of  Legislature,  named 
a  county  "Mercer,"  and  on  October  1,  1897,  a  bronze  tablet 
to  his  memory  was  unveiled  at  Princeton,  N.  J.  We  have  not 
the  space  to  relate  all  of  his  illustrious  life,  but  somewhere 
there  is  a  poem,  the  last  lines  of  which  voice  the  sentiment 
of  his  countrymen. 

"But  he,  himself,  is  canonized, 
If  saintly  deeds  such  fame  can  give; 

As  long  as  liberty  is  prized, 
Hugh   Mercer's  name  shall  surely   live." 

Sir  Lewis  Littlepage 

In  the  possession  of  a  well-known  man  of  Richmond,  Va., 
is  a  large  gold  key. 

It  is  vastly  different  from  the  keys  one  sees  these  days, 
and  inquiry  develops  that  it  was  once  the  property  of  one  of  the 
most  picturesque  characters  in  America  —  a  man  who  began 
his  life  in  the  cornfields  of  Hanover  County,  Va.,  in  1753, 
and  was  swept  by  the  wave  of  circumstance  into  the  palace 
of  a  King. 

The  atmosphere  of  old  William  and  Mary  College,  where 
Lewis  Littlepage  was  graduated,  after  the  death  of  his  father, 
gave  a  mysteriously  romantic  note  to  the  beckoning  song  of  ad- 
venture, which  finally  became  a  definite  urge,  when  the  youth, 
after  residing  in  Fredericksburg,  listened  to  the  advice  of  his 
guardian,  Benjamin  Lewis,  of  Spotsylvania  County,  who 
placed  him  with  John  Jay,  the  American  Minister  at  Madrid. 

83 


The  Poet  Takes  TJie  Szi'ord 

Six  months  later,  Jay,  in  a  letter  to  Benjamin  Lewis,  said 
of  the  seveteen-year-old  lad  : 

"I  am  much  pleased  with  your  nephelw,  Lewis  Littlepage, 
whom  I  regard  as  a  man  of  undoubted  genius,  and  a  person 
of  unusual  culture." 

And  a  few  months  after  this  we  discover  that  the  well- 
known  traveler,  Mr.  Klekiah  Watson,  has  an  entry  in  his  diary 
which  reads  : 

"At  Nantes  I  became  acquainted  with  Lewis  Littlepage, 
and  although  he  is  but  eighteen  years  of  age,  I  believe  him 
to  be  the  most  remarkable  character  of  the  age.  I  esteem  him 
a  prodigy  of  genius." 

In  Madrid,  Littlepage  got  into  financial  straits,  owing  to 
the  fact  that  his  allowance  did  not  reach  him,  and  the  next 
glimpse  we.  get  of  him  is  through  the  smoke  of  battle  at  Fort 
Mahon,  where  in  1 78  r ,  as  a  member  of  the  force  under  the 
Duke  de  (Trillion,  he  was  painfully  wounded  while  charging 
the  Turks. 

In  1872,  en  route  to  Madrid  to  join  Mr.  Jay,  he  heard  that 
de  Crillion  was  preparing  to  storm  Gibraltar,  and.  believing 
himself  in  honor  bound  to  follow  the  fortunes  of  his  chief,  he 
wrote  Mr.  Jay  that  he  must  turn  again  to  arms. 

From  that  day  forward  he  was  a  soldier,  a  diplomat, 
a  courtier — -the  elected  friend  of  Kings  and  Princes. 

He  aided   in   storming  Gibraltar  and   left   his   ship  only 

when  it  had  burned  to  the  water's  cdi^Q.  He  was  highly 
recommended  to  the  King  for  his  gallantry,  and  went  back  to 
Paris  with  de  Crillion  to  become  a  brilliant  figure  at  court 
and  in  the  salons. 

Europe  knew  him,  but  America  refused  him  even  a  small 
commission,  though  King-  wrote  to  our  Congress  in  his  behalf. 

He  met  Lafayette  at  Gibraltar;  in  fact,  accompanied  him 
to  Spain.  Then,  after  considerable  travel  in  European  coun- 
tries, he  again  encountered  Prince  Xassau,  who  was  his  brother 
at  arms  in  de  Crillion'.-   forces,  became  his  aide-de-camp  and, 

84 


When  Polands  Star  Flamed 

together  they  found  happiness  in  travel.  They  sought  the 
bright  lights  o>f  gay  capitals  and  followed  mysterious  moon 
tracks  on  the  Danube  river. 

At  the  Diet  of  Grodno,  in  1784,  where  he  went  with 
Nassau,  he  met  Stanislaus  Augustus,  King  of  Poland.  He 
captivated  the  King;  and  in  a  brilliant  ball  room,  Stansilaus 
offered  him  a  permanent  service  at  his  court. 

Within  a  year  he  was  chamberlain  and  secretary  to  the 
cabinet  of  His  Majesty,  and  for  years  he  was  practically  the 
ruler  of  the  empire. 

In  1787,  at  Kiva,  he  made  a  treaty  with  Catherine,  Em- 
press of  Russia,  and  became  her  intimate  friend. 

He  was  a  special  and  secret  envoy  from  Poland  to  the  ses- 
sions of  the  grand  quadruple  alliance  in  France.  Later  we  see 
him  leading  a  division  of  the  army  of  Prince  Potempkin  across 
the  snow-clad  steppes  of  Russia,  and  a  few  months  after,  he 
was  marching  at  the  head  of  the  Prince's  army  through  the 
wild  reaches  of  Tartary.  Again,  under  Prince  Nassau,  we  find 
him  commanding  a  fleet  against  the  Turks  at  Oczacon. 

Shortly  after,  he  was  a  special  high  commissioner  to 
Madrid.  His  mission  completed,  he  was  ordered  to  return 
to  Russia  for  the  revolution  of  1791,  and  now  he  served  as 
aide-de-camp  and  Major-General. 

In  1794,  when  the  Polish  patriot,  Kosciusco,  headed  a 
revolution,  Littlepage  answered  his  summons  and  fought 
through  to  the  storming  of  Prague. 

Stanislaus  held  him  the  greatest  of  his  generals  and  his 
aides  and  when  the  King  was  captured  by  the  Russians,  Little- 
page,  tired  of  the  broils  of  European  politics,  came  home  to 
America. 

When  Littlepage  was  first  in  Poland,  the  place  was  gay 
and  laughter-loving.  An  atmosphere  of  high  culture  and  lit- 
erary achievements  made  a  satisfactory  entourage  for  the  ill- 
fated  people.  He  lived  happily  there  and  loved  a  princess  of 
North  Poland.     There  were  starlight  meetings  and  woodland 

85 


Ill,  But  he  Had  His  Memories 

strolls,  vows  of  faith  and  the  pain  of  renunciation,  when  for 
diplomatic  reasons  she  was  forced  to  endure  another  alliance. 
Littlepage's  reputation  and  splendid  appearance;  her  beauty 
and  the  love  they  bore  each  other  and,  finally,  her  death,  made  a 
background  of  red  romance,  against  which  he  is  silhouetted  in 
one's   memory. 

That  Lewis  Littlepage  was  a  poet  of  no  mean  ability  was 
a  fact  too  well  known  to  he  disputed.  The  last  verse  of  a  poem 
written  by  him  and  inspired  by  the  death  of  the  woman  he 
loved  reads : 

"Over  there,  where  you  hide  —  past  the  sunset's  gold  glory. 
With  eyes  that  are  shining,  and  red  lips  apart, 
Are  you  waiting  to  tell  me  the  wonderful  story, 
That  death  cannot  part  us  —  White  Rose  of  my  Heart." 

It  is  said  that  Littlepage  had  more  honors  and  decorations 
showered  upon  him  than  any  other  American  in  history. 

Go  to  the  old  Masonic  cemetery  in  Fredericksburg,  and 
in  a  far  corner,  where  the  wild  vines  and  the  hardy  grass  strug- 
gle for  mastery,  you  may  see  a  legend  inscribed  upon  a  large 
flat  stone:  This  is  the  tomb  of  Lewis  Littlepage.  For  the 
multitude,  it  is  simply  an  unpleasant  finale  to  the  life  of  a 
well  known  man. 

To  the  imaginative,  it  starts  a  train  of  thought  —  a  play 
of  fancy.  One  >ees  the  rise  of  the  star  of  Poland.  Gay  youths 
and  maids  pass  and  repass  t<>  the  sound  of  music  and  laughter. 
The  clank  of  a  sword  sounds  above  the  measured  foot  fall  on 
a  polished  floor.  A  soldier  passes  in  all  the  braverv  of  uni- 
form. It  is  General  Littlepage  silently  going  to  an  audience 
with  the  King.  The  massive  doors  open  without  a  challenge, 
for  as  a  passport  to  the  palace,  on  the  uniform  of  this  soldier 
glitters  a  large  gold  key  —  the  gift  of  Stanislaus. 

Suddenly  the  scene  changes.  Amid  the  surging  hosts  and 
in  the  thick  of  the  bloody  clash  at  Prague,  when  the  anguish 
of  uncertainty  was  crumbling  the  courage  of  a  kingdom,  a 
man  is  seen,  riding  witli  reckless  abandon.     Tearing  through 

86 


General  George  Wcedon 

the  lines  and  holding  aloft  the  tattered  standard  of  Poland, 
comes  Littlepage  of  Virginia.  With  the  rallying  cry  of  his 
adopted  land,  he  gathers  up  his  troops  and  gloriously  defends 
the  flag  he  loves.  Our  eyes  again  stray  to  the  legend  on  the 
tomb :  Disillusionment ! 

His  return  to  his  old  home !  His  death !  We  see  this 
also,  but  with  this  is  the  knowledge  that  he  lived  greatly,  and 
in  his  ears,  while  dying,  sounded  again  the  shout  of  victory, 
while  his  heart  held  the  dream  of  the  old  romance. 

Gen.  George  Weedon 

Among  the  first  men  in  America  to  "fan  the  flames  of 
sedition,"  as  an  English  traveler  said  of  him  long  before  the 
war,  was  Mine  Host  George  Weedon,  keeper  of  the  Rising 
Sun  Tavern,  Postmaster,  and  an  Irish  immigrant.  At  his 
place  gathered  all  the  great  of  his  day,  spending  hours  dicing 
and  drinking  punch. 

Over  and  over  among  these  men  —  Washington,  Mason, 
Henry,  the  Lees,  Jefferson  and  every  Virginia  gentleman  of 
that  section,  George  Weedon  heard  discussion  of  the  Colo- 
nies' problems,  and  he  forcibly  gave  vent  to  his  opinions. 

Time  and  again  he  expressed  the  idea  of  freedom  before 
others  had  thought  of  more  than  protest.  His  wild  Irish  talk 
in  the  old  Rising  Sun  Tavern  helped  to  light  the  torch  of 
liberty  in  America. 

When  war  came,  Weedon  was  elected  Lieutenant-Colonel 
of  the  First  Virginia,  of  which  Hugh  Mercer  was  chosen 
Colonel.  August  17,  1776,  he  became  its  Colonel,  and  on 
February  24,  1777,  he  was  made  a  Brigadier-General. 

In  the  Battle  of  Brandywine.  General  Weedon's  division 
rendered  conspicuous  service,  when  they  checked  the  pursuit 
of  the  British  and  saved  our  army  from  rout.  He  commanded 
brilliantly  at  Germantown.  Wherever  he  fought,  his  great 
figure  and  stentorian  voice  were  prominent  in  the  conflict. 


I  Sons  For  the  Yulctidc 


\N 


He  admired  Washington  and  his  fellow-generals.  It 
was  not  because  of  these,  but  because  he  thought  Congress 
to  have  treated  him  unfairly  about  rank,  that  he  left  the  Army 
at  Valley  Forge.  He  re-entered  in  1780,  and  in  1781  was 
given  command  of  the  Virginia  troops,  which  he  held  until 
the  surrender  of  Yorktown,  where  he  played  an  important 
part. 

George  Weedon  was  the  first  President  of  the  Virginia 
Society  of  the  Cincinnati,  a  fraternity  of  Revolutionary  offi- 
cers which  General  Washington  helped  to  organize,  and  this 
was,  indeed,  a  singular  honor.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Fredericksburg  Masonic  Lodge,  of  which  Washington  was 
also  a  member.  After  the  war,  he  lived  at  "The  Sentry  Box," 
the  former  home  of  his  gallant  brother-in-law,  General 
Mercer. 

General  Weedon  was  a  man  of  exuberant  spirits,  loud  of 
voice  and  full  of  Irish  humor.  He  wrote  a  song  called  ''Christ- 
mas Day  in  '76,"  and  on  each  Yuletide  he  assembled1  at  his 
board  his  old  comrades  and  friends,  and,  while  two  negro  boys 
stood  sentinel  at  the  door,  drank  punch  and  roared  out  the 
verses : 

"On  Christmas  Day  in  '76 
Our   ragged   troops   with   bayonets   fixed, 

For  Trenton  marched  away. 
The  Delaware  ice,  the  boats  below 
The  lights  obscured  by  hail  and  snow, 
But  no   signs   of   dismay." 

Beginning  thus,  the  brave  Irishman  who  verbally  and  physi- 
cally fought  among  the  foremost  for  America  for  over 
thirty  years,  told  the  >tury  of  Washington's  crossing  the 
Delaware,  vividly  enough,  and  every  Christmas  his  guests 
stood  with  him  and  >an«r  the  ballad.* 


*See  Goolrick's  '"Life  of  Mercer." 

88 


Mason  and  Woodford 


Mason  of  Gunston 


Of  George  Mason,  whom  Garland  Hunt  says  is  "more 
than  any  other  man  entitled  to  be  called  the  Father  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,"  whom  Judge  Garland  says,  "Is 
the  greatest  political  philosopher  the  Western  Hemisphere  ever 
produced,"  of  whose  Bill  of  Rights,  Gladstone  said  "It  is  the 
greatest  document  that  ever  emanated  from  the  brain  of  man," 
little  can  be  said  here.  His  home  was  at  Gunston  Hall,  on  the 
Potomac,  but  the  Rising  Sun  knefvv  him  well,  and  his  feet  often 
trod  Mary  Washington's  garden  walks,  or  the  floors  of  Ken- 
more,  Chatham  and  the  other  residences  of  Old  Fredericks- 
burg. 

Mason  was  intimate  here,  and  here  much  of  his  trading 
and  shipping  was  done.  When  he  left  Gunston,  it  was  usually 
to  come  to  Fredericksburg  and  meet  his  younger  conferees, 
who  were  looking  up  to  him  as  the  greatest  leader  in  America. 
He  died  and  is  buried  at  Gunston  Hall.  It  was  in  Fredericks- 
burg that  he  first  met  young  Washington,  who  ever  afterward 
looked  upon  "The  Sage  of  Gunston"  as  his  adviser  and  friend, 
and  as  America's  greatest  man. 

General  William  Woodford 

Although  he  came  from  Caroline,  General  William  Wood- 
ford was  a  frequenter  of  and  often  resident  in  Fredericksburg, 
and  it  was  from  this  city  he  went  to  Caroline  upon  the  assemb- 
ling of  troops  when  Lord  Dunmore  became  hostile.  In  subse- 
quent military  operations  he  was  made  Colonel  of  the  Second 
Regiment  and  distinguished  himself  in  the  campaign  that  fol- 
lowed, and  he  was  honorably  mentioned  for  his  valiant  conduct 
at  the  battle  of  Gread  Bridge,  December  9,  1775,  upon  which 
occasion  he  had  the  chief  command  and  gained  a  brilliant  vic- 
tory. He  was  later  made  General  of  the  First  Virginia  Bri- 
gade. His  command  was  in  various  actions  throughout  the 
war,  in  one  of  which,  the  Battle  of  Brandywine,  he  was 
severely  wounded.  He  was  made  prisoner  by  the  British  in 
1778  at  Charleston,  and  taken  to  New  York,  where  he  died. 

89 


The  Ozvner  of  " Kcnmorc" 

Cor,.  Fielding  Lewis 

The  mansion  stands  in  a  park,  which  in  autumn  is  an 
explosion  of  color.  An  old  wall,  covered  with  Virginia 
creeper,  adds  a  touch  of  glamour  to  the  Colonial  house,  and  a 
willow  tree  commanding  a  conspicuous  corner  of  the  grounds 
lends  a  melancholy  aspect  which  makes  up  the  interesting 
atmosphere  of  Kenmore,  part  of  the  estate  of  Colonel  Fielding 
Lewis,  who  brought  to  this  home  his  bride,  "Betty,"  a  sister 
of  George  Washington,  and  where  they  lived  as  befitted  people 
of  wealth  and  learning,  his  wife  giving  an  added  meaning  to 
the  social  life  of  the  old  town,  and  Colonel  Lewis  himself  tak- 
ing an  active  and  prominent  part  in  the  civic  affairs,  as  most 
people  of  wealth  and  culture  deemed  it  their  duty  to.  do  in 
the  days  gone  by. 

Colonel  Lewis  was  an  officer  in  the  Patriot  Army  and 
commanded  a  division  at  the  siege  of  Yorktown.  He  was  an 
ardent  patriot  and  when  the  Revolution  started  his  activities 
ran  to  the  manufacture  of  firearms,  which  were  made  at  ''The 
Gunnery"  from  iron  wrought  at  the  foundry,  traces  of  which 
may  still  be  seen  on  the  Rappahannock  river,  just  above  the 
village  of  Falmouth. 

Colonel  Lewis  was  a  magistrate  in  the  town  after  the 
war,  a  member  of  the  City  Council  and  represented  the  county 
in  the  Legislature. 

His  son,  Captain  Robert  Lewis,  was  one  of  President 
Washington's  private  secretaries  and  mayor  of  Fredericksburg 
from  1 82 1  to  the  day  of  his  death.  When  LaFayette  visited 
the  town  in  1824,  Colonel  Lewis  was  selected  to  deliver  the 
address  of  welcome. 

However,  we  are  apt  t<>  forget  the  elegancies  and  excel- 
lencies of  the  courtly  man  whose  life  was  dedicated  to  useful 
service  in  a  note  that  is  struck  by  the  home  in  which  he  lived. 
Kenmore,  in  the  light  of  its  past,  sounds  an  overtone  of 
romance.  We  cannot  escape  it,  and  it  persistently  reverberates 
above  the  people  it  sheltered. 

90 


The  Greatest  Officeholder 


James  Monroe 


James  Monroe  was  among  the  most  important  citizens 
that  ever  lived  in  Fredericksburg. 

Monroe  was  born  in  Westmoreland  County,  not  far  from 
what  is  now  Colonial  Beach.  When  a  young  man  he  was 
attracted  by  the  larger  opportunities  afforded  by  the  town  and 
moved  to  Fredericksburg,  where  he  began  the  practice  of  law, 
having  an  office  in  the  row  of  old  brick  buildings  on  the  west 
side  of  Charles  Street,  just  south  of  Commerce.  Records  still 
in  the  courthouse  show  that  he  bought  property  on  lower 
Princess  Anne  Street,  which  still  is  preserved  and  known  as 
"The  Home  of  James  Monroe."  Monroe  occupied  the  house 
when  it  was  located  at  Bradley's  corner,  and  it  was  afterwards 
moved  to  its  present  site,  though  some  contend  that  he  lived 
in  the  house  on  its  present  site. 

Shortly  after  his  arrival  he  became  affiliated  with  St. 
George's  Church,  soon  being  elected  a  vestryman,  and  when  he 
had  been  here  the  proper  length  of  time  he  got  into  politics, 
and  was  chosen  as  one  of  the  Town  Councilmen.  From  this 
humble  political  preferment  at  the  hands  of  the  Fredericksburg 
people,  he  began  a  career  that  seemed  ever  afterward  to  have 
included  nothing  but  officeholding.  Later  he  became  Conti- 
nental Congressman  from  the  district  including  Fredericks- 
burg, and  was,  in  turn,  from  that  time  on,  Representative  in 
the  Virginia  convention,  Governor  of  Virginia,  United  States 
Congressman,  Envoy  Extraordinary  to  France,  again  Gover- 
nor, Minister  to  England,  Secretary  of  War,  once  more  Min- 
ister to  England,  Minister  to  Madrid,  Secretary  of  State  and 
twice  President  —  if  not  a  world's  record  at  least  one  that  is 
not  often  overmatched.  Previous  to  his  political  career,  Monroe 
had  served  in  the  Revolutionary  Army  as  a  Captain,  having 
been  commissioned  while  a  resident  of  Fredericksburg. 

Monroe  gave  to  America  one  of  its  greatest  documents  — 
known  to  history  as  the  Monroe  Doctrine.  It  was  directed 
essentially  against  the  purposes  of  the  Holy  Alliance,  formed 

9i 


'Old  Doctor  Mortimer" 

in  1815  by  the  principal  European  powers  with  the  fundamental 
object  of  putting  down  democratic  movements  on  the  part  of 
the  people,  whether  they  arose  abroad  or  on  this  side  of  the 
world.  After  consultation  with  English  statesmen  and  with 
Jefferson,  Adams,  John  Ouiney  Adams  and  Calhoun,  Monroe 
announced  his  new  principle  which  declared  that  the  United 
States  of  America  would  resent  any  attempt  of  the  Alliance  to 
"extend  their  system  to  this  part  of  the  Hemisphere  " 

Dr.  Charles  Mortimer 

In  a  beautiful  old  home  on  lower  Main  Street,  surrounded 
by  a  wall,  mellowed  by  time,  and  ivy-crowned,  lived  Washing- 
ton's dear  friend  and  physician,  Dr.  Charles  Mortimer.  He 
could  often  be  seen,  in  the  days  gone  by,  seated  on  his  com- 
fortable "verandah,"  smoking  a  long  pipe,  covered  with  curious 
devices,  and  discussing  the  affairs  of  the  moment  with  those 
rare  intellects  who  were  drawn  there  by  the  interesting  atmos- 
phere of  blended  beauty  and  mentality.  There  was,  as  a  back- 
ground, a  garden,  sloping  to  the  river,  and  sturdy  trees 
checquered  the  sunlight.  Old-fashioned  flowers  nodded  in  the 
breeze  which  blew  up  from  the  Rappahannock,  and  the 
Doctor's  own  tobacco  ships,  with  their  returned  English 
cargoes,  swung  on  their  anchors  at  the  foot  of  the  terraces. 

If  one  entered  the  house  at  the  dinner  hour,  every  deli- 
cacy of  land  and  water  would  conspire  against  a  refusal  to 
dine  with  the  host  of  this  hospitable  mansion.  Highly  polished 
and  massive  pewter  dishes,  disputed  possession  of  the  long  ma- 
hoganv  table,  with  a  mammoth  bowl  of  roses — arrogantly 
secure  of  an  advantageous  position  in  the  center. 

There  was  often  the  sound  of  revelry  by  night,  and  the 
rafters  echoed  gay  laughter  and  the  music  of  violins  —  high, 
and  -weet  and  clear. 

An  historic  dinner,  following  the  famous  Peace  Rail  at 
the  old  Market  House  in  November,  17K4,  was  given  here,  and 
the    hostess,    little    Maria    Mortimer,    sixteen    years    old,    the 

92 


Maury — a  Master  Genius 

Doctor's  only  daughter,  with  her  hair  "cruped  high"  for  the 
first  time,  presided,  and  her  bon  mots  won  the  applause  of  the 
company,  which  was  quite  a  social  triumph  for  a  sixteen-year- 
old  girl,  trying  to  hold  her  own  with  Lafayette,  Count 
d'Estang  and  the  famous  Rochambeau.  They  clicked  glasses 
and  drank  to  her  health  standing,  and  little  Maria  danced 
with  "Betty  Lewis'  Uncle  George  himself,"  for  Washington 
did  not  disdain  the  stately  measures  of  the  minuet. 

But  there  is  an  obverse  here.  The  old  Doctor  did  not  fail 
in  his  duty.  On  horseback,  with  his  saddlebag  loaded  with 
medicines,  he  rode  down  dark  forest  paths  to  the  homes  of 
pioneers,  traveled  the  streets  of  Fredericksburg  and  came 
silently  along  lone  trails  in  the  country  in  the  dead  of  night, 
when  hail  or  snow  or  driving  rains  cut  at  him  bitterly  through 
the  trees.  He  refused  no  call,  and  claimed  small  fees.  He 
was  Mary  Washington's  physician  for  years,  called  on  her 
almost  daily,  and  stood  by  her  bedside  mute,  when,  the  struggle 
over,  she  quietly  passed  on  to  the  God  in  whom  she  had  put 
her  deepest  faith. 

Of  the  many  people  who  walk  in  Hurkamp  Park,  in  the 
center  of  the  old  town,  there  are  few  who  know  that  they  are 
passing  daily  over  the  grave  of  the  genial  and  popular  Doctor, 
who  was  Fredericksburg's  first  mayor,  and  Washington's 
dearest  friend. 

Matthew  Fontaine  Maury 

Of  all  the  famous  men  who  went  from  Fredericksburg 
to  take  large  parts  in  the  rapidly  moving  history  of  America, 
or  in  the  work  of  the  world.  Commodore  Maury  added  most 
to  the  progress  of  science.  Not  only  did  he  create  knowledge, 
but  he  created  wealth  by  the  immense  saving  he  effected  to 
shipping  by  charting  shorter  ocean  routes.  He  is  buried  in 
Hollywood  Cemetery,  in  Richmond,  under  a  simple  shaft 
which  bears  the  name,  "Matthew  Fontaine  Maury."  The 
great  "pathfinder  of  the  seas"  was  born  in  Spotsylvania  County, 
January,  1806,  and  died  at  Lexington  in  1873. 

93 


A  World  Famed  Scientist 

lie  wore  the  most  prized  decorations  the  monarchs  of 
Europe  could  give  him:  lie  founded  the  most  valuable  natural 
science  known,  and  was  reckoned  a  transcendent  genius.  Of 
him.  Mellin  Chamberlain,  Librarian  of  Congress,  said,  with 
calm  consideration  "I  do  not  suppose  there  is  the  least  doubt 
that  Maury  was  the  greatest  man  America  ever  produced." 

Alexander  Humbolt  said  that  Maury  created  a  new 
science. 

He  plunged  into  the  unknolwn;  he  charted  the  seas  and 
mapped  its  currents  and  winds.  lie  was  the  first  to  tell  the 
world  that  winds  and  currents  were  not  of  chance,  but  of  fixed 
and  immutable  laws,  and  that  even  cyclones  were  well  gov- 
erned. He  knew  why  a  certain  coast  was  dry  and  another 
rainy,  and  he  could,  on  being  informed  of  the  latitude  and 
longitude  of  a  place,  tell  what  was  the  prevailing  weather  and 
winds. 

Maurv  went  to  sea  as  a  midshipman  in  the  American 
navy  in  1825.  and  in  1831,  at  twenty-four  years  of  age,  he  be- 
came master  of  the  sloop  Falmouth,  with  orders  to  go  to  the 
Pacific  waters,  but,  though  he  sought  diligently,  he  found  no 
chart  of  a  track  for  his  vessel,  no  record  of  currents  or  of  winds 
to  guide  him.  The  sea  was  a  trackless  wilderness,  and  the 
winds  were  things  of  vagrant  caprice.  And  he  began  then  to 
grapple  with  those  problems  which  were  to  immortalize  him. 

He  came  back  from  ocean  wanderings  in  a  few  years  and 
married  an  old  sweetheart,  Miss  Ann  Herndon.  of  Fredericks- 
burg, and  he  lived  for  a  time  on  Charlotte  Street,  between 
Princess  Anne  and  Prince  Edward,  and  wrote  his  first  book, 
"A  Treatise  on  Navigation ;"  while  from  his  pen  came  a  series 
of  newspaper  and  magazine  articles  that  startled  the  world 
of  scientific  thought.  For  the  man  had  discovered  new  and 
unsuspected  natural  laws! 

Mi-fortune  —  that  vastly  helped  him  —  came  in  1839, 
when  his  leg  was  injured  through  the  overturning  of  a  stage 
coach.     The  government  put  him  in  charge  of  a  new  "Bureau 

94 


Charting  Seas  and  Winds 

of  Charts  and  Instruments,"  at  Washington,  and  out  of  his 
work  here  grew  the  Naval  Observatory,  the  Signal  Service  and 
the  first  Weather  Bureau  ever  established  on  earth !  Every 
other  science  was  old.  His  science  was  utterly  new,  a  field 
untouched. 

He  found  a  mass  of  log  books  of  American  warships. 
Over  these  he  pondered.  He  sent  hundreds  of  bottles  and 
buoys  to  be  dropped  into  the  seven  seas  by  fighting  craft  and 
merchantmen. 

These  were  picked  up  now  and  again  and  came  back  to 
him,  and  from  the  information  sent  to  him  with  them,  and 
soundings  in  thousands  of  places,  added  to  what  he  had 
gleaned  in  earlier  years,  he  prepared  his  greatest  work.  It  took 
ultimate  form  in  a  series  of  six  "charts"  and  eight  large 
volumes  of  "sailing  directions,"  that  comprehended  all  the 
waters  and  winds  in  all  climes,  and  on  every  sea  where  white 
sails  bend  and  steamer  smoke  drifts. 

The  charts  exhibit,  with  wonderful  accuracy,  the  winds 
and  currents,  their  force  and  direction  at  different  seasons, 
the  calm  belts,  the  trade  winds,  the  rains  and  storms — the  gulf 
stream,  the  Japan  current — all  the  great  ocean  movements ; 
and  the  sailing  directions  are  treasure  chests  for  seamen. 
Paths  were  marked  out  on  the  ocean,  and  a  practical  result  was, 
that  one  of  the  most  difficult  sea  voyages  — from  New  York 
to  San  Francisco,  around  the  Horn — 'was  shortened  by  forty 
days.  It  has  been  estimated  that  by  shortening  the  time  of 
many  sea  voyages.  Commander  Maury  has  effected  a  saving  of 
not  less  than  $40,000,000  each  year. 

Of  his  own  work,  Maury  wrote  : 

"So  to  shape  the  course  on  voyages  at  sea  as  to  make  the 
most  of  winds  and  currents,  is  the  perfection  of  the  navigator's 
art.  How  the  winds  blow  or  the  currents  flow  along  this  route 
or  that  is  no  longer  a  matter  of  speculation  or  opinion.  The 
wind  and  weather,  daily  encountered  by  hundreds  who  sailed 
before  him,  have  been  tabulated  for  the  mariner;  nay,  the  path 
has  been  blazed  for  him  on  the  sea;  mile  posts  have  been  set 

95 


Honored  by  All  Europe 

upon  the  waves  and  time  tables   furnished  for  the  trackless 
waste." 

It  was  this  work  that,  reaching  over  Europe  and  Asia, 
brought  on  the  Brussels  conference  in  1853,  to  which  Maury, 
founder  of  the  science  of  hydrography  and  meteorology, 
went  as  America's  representative,  and  here  he  covered  himself 
with  honors.  He  came  back  to  write  his  "Physical  Geography 
of  the  Sea  and  Its  Meteorology." 

This,  the  essence  of  his  life  work,  the  poetry  and  the 
romance  of  his  science,  passed  through  twenty  editions  and 
was  known  in  every  school,  but  the  book's  greatest  interest 
was  killed  by  the  removal  of  the  poetic  strain  that  made  it 
beautiful.  It  has  been  translated  into  almost  every  language. 
In  it  is  the  story  of  the  sea,  its  tides  and  winds,  its  shore  lines 
and  its  myriads  of  life;  its  deep  and  barren  bottoms.  For 
Maury  also  charted  the  ocean  floors,  and  it  was  his  work  in 
this  line  that  caused  Cyrus  Field  to  say  of  the  laying  of  the 
Atlantic  cable : 

"Maury  furnished  the  brains,  England  furnished  the 
money,  and   I  did  the  work." 

Xo  other  American  ever  was  honored  by  Emperors  and 
Kings  as  was  Matthew  Fontaine  Maury.  He  was  given  orders 
of  Knighthood  by  the  Czar  of  Russia,  the  King  of  Denmark, 
King  of  Spain,  King  of  Portugal,  King  of  Belgium  and  Em- 
peror of  France,  while  Russia,  Austria,  Sweden,  Holland, 
Sardenia,  Bremen,  Turkey  and  France  struck  gold  medals  in 
his  honor.  The  pope  of  Rome  sent  him  a  full  set  of  all  the 
medals  struck  during  his  pontificate.  Maximilian  decorated 
him  with  "The  Cross  of  the  Order  of  Guadaloupe"  while  Ger- 
many bestowed  on  him  the  "Cosmos  Medal,"  struck  in  honor 
of  Von  Humboldt,  and  the  only  duplicate  of  that  medal  in 
existence. 

The  current  of  the  Civil  War  swept  Maury  away  from 
Washington,  and  he  declined  offers  from  France,  Germany 
and  Russia,  joining  his  native  state  in  the  Confederacy.     He 

96 


Archibald  McPherson 


introduced  the  submarine  torpedo,  and  rendered  the  South 
other  service  before  the  final  wreck,  which  left  him  stranded 
and  penniless.  He  went  to  Mexico  now,  to  join  his  fortunes 
with  those  of  the  unhappy  Maximilian,  and  when  the  Emperor 
met  his  tragic  end  he  found  himself  again  resourceless  —  and 
crippled.  In  1868  when  general  amnesty  was  given,  he  came 
back  to  become  the  first  professor  of  meteorology  at  the  Vir- 
ginia Military  Institute.  In  October,  1872,  he  became  ill  and 
died  in  February  of  the  next  year. 

And  this  man,  who  had  from  Kings  and  Emperors  more 
decorations  than  any  American  has  ever  received,  and  for 
whom  Europe  had  ever  ready  the  highest  honors  and  greatest 
praise,  was  ignored  by  his  own  government,  to  which  he  gave 
his  life's  work.  No  word  of  thanks,  no  tribute  of  esteem,  no 
reward,  was  ever  given  him.  A  bill  to  erect  a  monument  to 
him  lies  now  rotting  in  some  pigeonhole  in  Congress.  But 
an  effort  to  renew  this  is  underway. 

Archibald  McPherson 

Curiously  enough,  no  more  memory  is  left  to  Fredericks- 
burg of  Archibald  McPherson  than  the  tombstone  under  the 
mock  orange  tree  in  St.  George's  Church,  the  tablets  to  his 
memory  in  the  old  charity  school  on  Hanover  Street  (now  the 
Christian  Science  Church)  and  a  few  shadowy  legends  and 
unmeaning  dates. 

He  was  born  in  Scotland  and  died  in  Fredericksburg  in 
1854.     He  was  a  member  of  St.  George's  Church  and  vestry. 

But  what  manner  of  man  he  was,  the  few  recorded  acts 
we  know  will  convey  to  every  one.  He  established  a  Male  Char- 
ity School  with  his  own  funds  principally,  and  took  a  deep 
interest  in  it,  and,  dying,  he  left  the  small  fortune  he  had 
accumulated  by  Scotch  thrift  "to  the  poor  of  the  toKvn,"  and 
provided  means  of  dispensing  the  interest  on  this  sum  for  char- 
ity throughout  the  years  to  come.  Most  of  this  fund  was 
wiped  out  by  depreciation  of  monev,  etc.,  during  the  Civil 
War. 

97 


Men  of  Modern  Times 

Soldiers,  Adventurers  and  Sailors,  Heroes  and  Artists,  mingle  htrt. 

A  prophet  without  honor  in  his  own  country  was  Mon- 
cure  Daniel  Conway  because,  a  Fredericksburger  and  a  South- 
erner, he  opposed  slavery.  But  his  genius  won  him  world 
praise,  and  later,  honer  in  his  own  country. 

Born  in  1832,  near  Falmouth,  to  which  village  his  people 
moved  later,  the  child  of  Walker  Peyton  Conway  and  Margue- 
rite Daniel  Conway  he  inherited  from  a  long  line  of  ancestry, 
a  brilliant  intellect  and  fearlessness  to  tread  the  paths  of  free- 
dom. 

The  difficult  studious  child  was  too  much  for  his  teacher, 
Miss  Gaskins,  of  Falmouth,  so  he  was  sent,  at  the  age  of  ten, 
to  Fredericksburg  Classical  and  Mathematical  Academy,  origi- 
nally John  Marye's  famous  school,  and  made  rapid  progress. 

His  hero  was  his  great  uncle,  Judge  R.  C.  L.  Moncure,  of 
Glencairne,  and  his  early  memoirs  are  full  of  loving  gratitude 
for  the  great  man's  toleration  and  help.  The  Methodism  of 
his  parents  did  not  hold  him,  for  he  several  times  attended  the 
services  at  St.  George's  Church. 

The  wrongs  of  slavery  he  saw,  and  after  he  entered  Dick- 
inson College,  at  Carlisle,  in  his  fifteenth  year,  he  found  an 
anti-slavery  professor,  McClintock,  who  influenced  him  and 
encouraged  his  dawning  agnosticism.  His  cousin,  John  M. 
Daniel,  editor  of  the  Richmond  Kxaminer,  became,  in  1848, 
a  leading  factor  in  Conway's  life,  encouraging  his  literarv 
efforts  and  publishing  many  of  his  contributions. 

All  beauty,  all  art  appealed  to  him.  Music  was  always  a 
passion,  and  we  also  find  constant  and  quaint  references  to 
beautiful  women  and  girls.  It  seemed  the  superlative  compli- 
ment, though  he  valued  feminine  brains  and  ability. 

98 


Conway's  Famous  Friends 

His  great  spiritual  awakening  came  with  his  rinding  an 
article  by  Emerson  and  at  the  age  of  twenty,  to  the  delight  of 
his  family,  he  became  a  Methodist  minister. 

His  career  as  such  was  not  a  success.  After  one  of  his 
sermons,  in  which  he  ignored  Heaven  and  Hell,  his  father  said : 
"One  thing  is  certain,  Monk,  should  the  Devil  aim  at  a  Meth- 
odist preacher,  you'd  be  safe." 

He  moved  to  Cambridge.  The  prominence  of  his  South- 
ern family,  and  his  own  social  and  intellectual  charms  gave 
him  entre  to  the  best  homes  and  chiefest  among  them,  that  of 
his  adored  Emerson,  where  he  met  and  knew  all  the  great 
lights  of  the  day.  His  slavery  opinions,  valuable  as  a  Southern 
slave  owner's  son,  made  him  an  asset  in  the  anti-slavery  prop- 
aganda of  the  time. 

Among  his  friends  were  the  Thoreaus,  Hawthorne,  Long- 
fellow, Oliver  Wendell  Holmes  and  Agassiz. 

I  must  hurry  over  the  charm  of  those  college  days  to 
Moncure  Conway's  first  Unitarian  Church,  in  Washington. 
So  pronounced  were  his  sermons  on  anti-slavery  that  his  father 
advised  him  not  to  come  home  on  a  visit.  He  did  come  and 
had  the  humiliation  of  being  ordered  from  Falmouth  under 
pain  of  tar  and  feathers,  an  indignity  which  cut  him  to  his  soul. 
His  success  in  Washington  was  brilliant,  but  he  found  trouble, 
owing  to  his  abolitionist  opinions,  and  had  to  resign.  In  1856 
he  accepted  a  call  to  a  Cincinnati  church,  whose  literary  and 
artistic  circles  made  much  of  the  new  preacher.  The  wealth 
of  that  larger  population  enabled  Conway  to  establish  several 
charitable  homes.  He  married  there  Ellen  Davis  Dana, 
and  there  published  his  first  book,  "Tracts  For  Today."  He 
edited  a  paper,  The  Dial,  to  which  Emerson  contributed. 

He  went  to  England  to  the  South  Place  Chapel,  London, 
an  ethical  society,  and  the  round  peg  seemed  to  have  found  its 
proper  hole  at  last.  Here  he  labored  for  twenty  years,  and 
became  known  through  all  Europe.  His  personal  recollec- 
tions of  Alfred  Tennyson,  the  Brownings  their  courtship :  of 
Carlyle,  are  classics.     A  very  interesting  light  is  thrown  on 

99 


He  Travels  Through  Russia 

Freud.  He  was  intimate  with  the  whole  pre-Raphaelite  school 
and  gives  account  among  others  of  Rossetti  and  his  lovely 
wife,  all  friendships  he  formed  in  Madam  Brown's  charming 
home. 

Burne  Jones,  Morris,  Whistler,  Swinburne,  Arthur 
Hughs,  DeMaurier  (was  there  ever  such  a  collection  of  genius 
in  one  country)  are  all  described  in  Conway's  vivid  pen  pic- 
tures. Artemus  Warde  was  his  friend,  and  Conway  con- 
ducted the  funeral  services  over  that  world's  joy  giver,  and 
in  his  same  South  End  Chapel,  preached  memorial  addresses 
on  Cobblen,  Dickens,  Maurice,  Mazzanni,  Mill,  Straus,  Liv- 
ingstone, George  Eliot,  Stanley,  Darwin,  Longfellow,  Car- 
lyle,  the  beloved  Emerson,  Tennyson,  Huxley  and  Abe  Lin- 
coln, whom  he  never  admired,  though  he  recognized  his  brain 
and  personality.  He  accused  him  of  precipitating  the  horrible 
war  for  the  sake  of  a  flag  and  thus  murdering  a  million  men. 
Samuel  Clemens  (Mark  Twain)  and  his  wife  visited 
England  in  1872  and  Moncure  Conway  and  his  wife  knew 
them  intimately  and  afterwards  visited  them  in  this  country. 
Joseph  Jefferson,  John  Motley,  George  Eliot,  Mrs.  Humphrey 
Ward  (whose  book,  Robert  Elsmere,  he  flays)  and  W.  S.  Gil- 
bert, all  were  his  friends  The  man  was  a  genius,  a  social  Vol- 
taire; a  master  of  thought  and  phrase.  Where  before  did  an 
exile  from  his  own  country  ever  achieve  a  friendship  circle 
where  the  names  now  scintillate  over  all  the  world? 

He  visited  Paris  in  1867  and  the  story  of  his  travels  in  Rus- 
sia later  are  full  of  charm,  of  folk  lore  and  religious  mysticism. 
But  before  long  we  find  him  back  in  his  South  Place  Chapel.  His 
accounts  of  several  woman  preachers  there  are  interesting,  as  is 
that  of  Annie  Besant — the  wondrous  before-her-time — whom 
Mrs.  Conway  befriended  in  her  bitter  persecution  by  her  par- 
son husband  for  agnosticism.  In  1875  Conway  returned  to 
America,  and  Falmouth  town,  grieving  over  the  war  ravages 
and  his  lost  boyhood  friends.  He  toured  through  the  West, 
lecturing  on  Demonology,  and  the  great  Englishmen  he  knew. 
The  death  of  his  sun,  Dana,  and  of  his  wife  in  i8o,7,wrere  blows. 

100 


A  Great  American  Artist 

and  his  remaining  years  were  spent  in  Europe  with  several 
visits  between  to  his  brother,  Peter  V.  D.  Conway,  of  Fred- 
ericksburg, and  friends  in  America.  His  life  ended  in  1907 
in  Paris.  A  great  man,  a  brilliant  and  a  brave  one.  He  fought 
for  his  beliefs  as  bravely  as  ever  did  any  warrior  or  explorer 
in  unknown  lands. 

Gari  Melchers 

Crowning  a  hill,  which  is  the  triumphant  result  of  a 
series  of  terraces  rising  from  the  town  of  Falmouth,  oppo- 
site Fredericksburg,  is  Belmont,  the  home  of  Gari  Melchers, 
an  American  artist,  who  has  been  more  honored  abroad  than 
any  of  our  living  painters,  with  the  exception,  perhaps,  of 
John  Singer  Sargent. 

Born  in  Detroit,  Gari  Melchers  left  America  when  he  was 
seventeen,  to  pursue  his  studies  in  Europe. 

Flis  apprentice  days  were  spent  in  Dusseldorf  and  Paris, 
where  his  professional  debut  in  1889  gained  for  him  the 
coveted  Grand  Prix  —  Sargent  and  Whistler  being  the  only 
other  American  painters  similarly  honored. 

Ttaly  had  to  resign  to  Holland  the  prestige  of  lending 
her  country  to  the  genius  of  Mr.  Melchers,  for  he  intended 
to  reside  in  Italy,  but  owing  to  the  outbreak  of  the  cholera 
there  he  settled  at  Engmond  instead.  His  studio  borrowed 
the  interest  of  the  sea  on  one  side  and  the  charm  of  a  lazy 
canal  on  the  other,  and  over  its  door  were  inscribed  the  words : 
"Wahr  und  Klar"  (Truth  and  Clarity).  Here  he  worked  at 
those  objective  and  realistic  pictures  of  Dutch  life  and  scenes; 
and  free  from  all  scholastic  pretense,  he  painted  the  serene, 
yet  colorful  panorama  of  Holland. 

Christian  Brinton  says  of  the  art  of  Gari  Melchers  that 
it  is  explicit  and  veracious.  Prim  interiors  are  permeated  with 
a  light  that  envelopes  all  things  with  a  note  of  sadness.  Ex- 
terior scenes  reflect  the  shifting  of  seasons  or  the  precise  hour 
of  day.     He  paints  air  as  well  as  light  and  color.     Without 

101 


John  Elder's  Great  Work 

exaggeration,  he  manages  to  suggest  the  intervening  aerial 
medium  between  the  seer  and  the  thing  seen. 

Mr.  Melchers  has  no  set  formula. 

In  1918  there  was  a  wonderful  "one  man"  display  of  his 
art  at  the  Corcoran  Art  Gallery,  and  in  19 19,  the  Loan  Exhibi- 
tion, held  by  the  Copley  Society  at  the  Boston  Art  Club,  was 
the  second  of  the  two  important  recent  events  in  the  artist's 
career  since  his  returning  to  America.  Here  his  work  has 
undergone  some  perceptible  change,  gaining  lightness  and 
freshness  of  vision,  which  shows  his  reaction  to  a  certain  essen- 
tial Americanism.  Air.  Melchers  attacks  whatever  suits  his  par- 
ticular mood,  and  his  art  is  not  suggestive  of  a  subjective 
temperament. 

"The  Sermon" — "The  Communion" — "The  Pilots" — 
"The  Shipbuilders" — "The  Sailor  and  His  Sweetheart" — 
"The  Open  Door"  are  some  of  his  well-known  canvases. 
His  reputation  as  a  portrait  painter  rests  upon  a  secure  founda- 
tion. 

1  lis  awards  include  medals  from  Berlin,  Antwerp,  Vienna, 
Paris  and  Munich,  Ansterdam,  Dresden,  Pennsylvania  Acad- 
emy of  Fine  Arts,  and  many  other  medals  for  art  exhibitions. 

lie  is  an  officer  of  the  Legion  of  Honor,  France;  officer 
of  the  Order  of  the  "Red  Eagle,"  Prussia;  officer  of  the  Order 
of  "St.  Michael"  Bavaria:  officer  of  the  Order  of  the  "White 
Falcon."  Saxe-Weimar. 

Mr.  Melchers  himself  is  frank  and  not  chained  by  minor 
conventions.  He  lias  a  powerful  personality  and  a  charming 
wife,  who  dispenses  a  pleasant  hospitality,  in  a  home  that 
leaves  nothing  to  be  desired. 

John  A.   Elder 

Fredericksburg  gave  John  A.  Elder,  the  gifted  painter  to 
the  world,  for  he  saw  the  light  of  day  in  this  town  in  February, 
[833;  and  here  he  first  felt  that  call  to  art  which  had  its  begin- 
nings when  Elder  would,  as  a  mere  boy,  make  chalk  drawings 

102 


Some  of  Elder's  Paintings 

on  the  sides  of  the  buildings,  and  took  the  time,  while  doing 
errands  for  his  father,  to  give  rein  to  his  imagination  through 
some  interesting  sketch,  which  would  finally  drift  into  the 
possession  of  his  friends.  His  father's  opposition  to  an 
artistic  career  for  his  son  did  not  long  retard  his  progress,  as 
so  great  was  the  urge  within  him  that  he  borrowed  from 
a  fellow  townsman,  Mr.  John  Minor,  the  money  to  study 
abroad,  and  before  long  Dusseldorf,  Germany,  claimed  him 
as  a  student,  and  there  the  love  of  line  and  color  which  he 
had  inherited  from  his  mother's  family  gained  definition.  De- 
tails of  his  life  in  Dusseldorf  are  too  vague  to  chronicle  but  he 
returned  to  this  country  at  the  beginning  of  the  Civil  War, 
with  a  knowledge  of  his  art  which  gained  him  instant  recog- 
nition, and  success  followed  in  his  footsteps. 

Elder  was  a  man  whose  sympathetic  personality  drew  the 
love  of  his  fellow-men,  and  his  studio  was  the  rendezvous  of 
such  men  as  Attorney-General  R.  T.  Daniel,  Lord  Grant, 
Peterkin,  Fred  Daniel,  who  represented  the  United  States 
as  consul  to  Rome  for  fourteen  years,  and  many  others. 

His  experiences  in  war  gave  to  him  a  sureness  and  truth 
in  detail,  which,  when  added  to  his  technique,  produced  results 
which  challenged  the  admiration  of  all  who  saw  his  work. 

His  "Battle  of  the  Crater"  and  "Scout's  Prize"  were 
inspired  by  scenes  in  which  he  had  figured.  The  former 
hangs  on  the  walls  of  the  Westmoreland  Club,  in  Richmond, 
Va.,  and  his  canvas  "After  Appomattox"  adorns  the  State 
Library  in  the  same  city,  along  with  many  portraits  which 
trace  their  origin  to  him. 

His  "Lee"  and  "Jackson"  are  in  the  Corcoran  Art  Gal- 
lery in  Washington,  and  there  is  a  portrait  of  Mr.  Corcoran 
himself  which  owes  its  existence  to  his  gifted  brush. 

He  visited  Jefferson  Davis  at  "Beauvoir"  and  painted 
him  there. 

Of  ordinary  height  and  rather  thick  set,  Mr.  Elder's  appear- 
ance was  characterized  by  distinction  and  force.  His  eyes 
were  dark  and  very  expressive;  he  wore  a  moustache  and 

103 


Reverend  James  Pozver  Smith 

"imperial"  and  in  all  his  photographs  we  notice  the  "artistic 
flowing  tie"  On  the  left  of  his  forehead  was  a  scar,  the  result 
of  some  encounter  in  Germany,  and  as  the  artist  never  mar- 
ried, one  is  apt  to  read  a  romance  into  his  life.  However,  this 
is  pure  speculation,  as  there  is  nothing  to  substantiate  such  an 
assumption. 

"Jack"  Elder  was  a  master  of  the  foils,  and  on  one  occa- 
sion when  a  noted  Frenchman  engaged  him  in  a  "bout"  Elder 
disarmed  him  with  ease,  and  the  Frenchman's  foil  was  thrown 
against  the  ceiling. 

The  artist  returned  to  Fredericksburg,  where  he  lived 
six  years  prior  to  his  death,  which  occurred  on  February  25, 
1895,  and  m  these  last  years  he  was  ministered  to  by  his 
nieces  and  nephews,  who  showed  him  much  devotion. 

Rev.  James  Power  Smith 

Rev.  James  Power  Smith  was  not  born  in  Fredericksburg, 
but  he  preached  here  for  thirty  years,  at  the  Presbyterian 
Church,  aiding  the  poor  and  sick,  and  always  smiling.  He 
was  highly  successful  in  his  church  achievements  and  in  his 
years  of  editorship  of  the  Central  Presbyterian. 

One  night  in  his  life  proved  him  to  be  minted  of  fine 
metal,  and  that  night  inscribed  his  name  forever  in  history. 
It  was  the  fearful  night  when  Stonewall  Jackson  received  his 
death  blow. 

Captain  Smith  (now  Reverend)  was  a  theological  student 
when  war  broke  out.  and  was  immediately  made  a  military 
lieutenant  (not  a  chaplain).  Throughout  the  war  he  followed 
close  to  Jackson,  on  his  staff.  Religion  brought  them  together 
and  their  friendship  was  deep. 

When  in  the  darkness  of  the  trees  that  overhang  the  Chan- 
cellorsville  road,  "Stonewall"  Jackson  was  mortally  wounded 
and  others  about  him  killed  by  their  own  troops  there  were  a 
few  men,  among  them  General  A.  P.  Hill,  at  hand  to  help  him. 
He  had  hardly  been  taken   from  his  horse  when  two  aides', 

104 


When  Jackson  Was  Wounded 

Lieutenant  Morrison  and  Lieutenant  Smith,  arrived.  With 
General  Hill  directing,  they  arrested  the  bleeding.  Gen- 
eral Hill  had  to  hurry  back  to  form  his  men  for  an  attack. 
Lieutenant  Morrison  had  just  seen  a  field  piece,  not  200  yards 
away,  pointing  down  the  Plank  Road.  There  was  no  litter,  and 
General  Jackson  offered  to  walk  to  the  rear.  Leaning  on 
Major  Leigh  and  Lieutenant  Morrison,  he  began  struggling 
toward  his  lines.  They  had  just  placed  Jackson  on  a  litter 
that  had  been  sent  up,  when  the  Federal  cannon  began  to  rake 
the  road  with  canister.  Every  figure,  horse  or  gun  toward 
the  Confederate  lines  disappeared.  They  tried  to  take  him 
back,  but  a  litter-bearer  was  struck  down  and  the  Great  Leader 
was  dropped  and  bruised. 

In  a  moment,  on  the  dark  road  swept  by  awful  fire,  there 
were  but  three  men,  and,  as  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  Lieu- 
tenant Smith,  was  one  of  them,  it  is  apropos  to  quote  what 
Prof.  R.  S.  Dabney  says  in  his  Life  of  Jackson : 

"The  bearers  and  all  the  attendants,  excepting  Major 
Leigh  and  the  general's  two  aides,  had  left  and  fled  into  the 
woods.  While  the  sufferer  lay  in  the  road  with  his  feet  turned 
toward  the  enemy,  exposed  to  the  fire  of  the  guns',  his  attend- 
ants displayed  a  heroic  fidelity  which  deserved  to  go  down  in 
history  with  the  immortal  name  of  Jackson.  Disdaining  to 
leave  their  chief,  they  lay  down  beside  him,  leaning  above 
him  and  trying  as  far  as  possible  to  protect  him  with  their 
bodies.  On  one  side  was  Major  Leigh,  on  the  other  Lieu- 
tenant Smith.  Again  and  again  was  the  earth  torn  by  vol- 
leys of  canister,  and  minnie  balls  hissed  over  them,  the  iron 
striking  flashes  from  the  stones  about  him." 

Finally  when  the  firing  ceased,  General  Jackson  was 
removed  from  the  battlefield  to  a  hospital,  and  then  to  Mr. 
Chandler's  house  at  Guinea  Station,  where  he  died,  May  10, 
1863. 

Lieutenant  Smith  became  The  Reverend  when  war  ceased, 
and  married  Miss  Agnes  Lucy  Lacy,  a  daughter  of  Major  J. 
Horace  Lacy. 

105 


Major  J.  Horace  Lacy 

He  was  well  known  in  Fredericksburg'.  For  thirty  years 
he  was  pastor  here;  for  fifty  years  Secretary  of  the  Presby- 
terian Synod,  and  for  years  editor  of  the  Central  Presbyterian. 
Many  know  his  works.  All  men  know  the  deep,  immovable 
courage  it  took  that  night  to  lie  as  a  barrier,  to  take  whatever 
death  might  be  hurled  down  the  shell-swept  road  toward 
"'Stonewall"  Jackson. 

He  still  lives,  in  1921,  in  Richmond.  His  voice  is  low. 
his  smile  soft,  and  his  religion  his  life.  He  is  the  last  survivng 
member  of  "Stonewall"'  Jackson's  staff. 

Major  J.  Horace  Lacy 

There  are  many  living  now  who  remember  him.  The 
strong,  stolid  figure,  the  line  old  face  traced  with  the  lineage 
of  gentility,  the  cane  that  pounded  down  the  sidewalks  as  he 
went  where  he  willed.  There  are  some  left  who  knew  the 
power  and   poetry  and  kindliness  of  the  man. 

Major  Lacy  was  a  graduate  of  Washington  and  Lee  and 
an  attorney  at  law.  though  he  seldom  practiced.  He  was 
married  in  1848  at  Chatham,  when  he  was  twenty-four  years 
of  age.  to  Miss  Betty  Churchill  Jones,  and  later  became  the 
owner  of  "Chatham"  and  of  the  "Lacy  House,"  about  each 
of  which  clings  grim  traditions  of  war;  both  the  Wilderness 
place  and  Chatham  1/ecame  known  in  those  two  battles  as 
"The  Lacy  House." 

Washington  Irving  was  his  guest  while  spending  some 
time  in  Virginia;  General  Robert  F.  Lee  was  his  guest,  and 
many  other  widely  known  men. 

His  service  in  war  was  well  done.  He  was  made  a  lieu- 
tenant at  the  beginning  and  promoted  to  major  on  the  field 
of  battle  at  Seven  Pines.  He  served  under  General  Joseph  E. 
Johnston  until  the  latter  surrendered,  some  time  after  Appo- 
mattox. 

When  the  war  was  ended  he  went  North  to  do  a  brave 
tiling.     He  spoke  through  Pennsylvania  and  Maryland,  plead- 

106 


Winning  a  Hostile  Audience 

ing  for  funds  to  bury  and  put  grave  stones  over  the  Con- 
federate dead.  He  had  experiences'  there.  But  his  splendid 
oratory  and  the  courage  of  his  presence  usually  kept  order. 

He  spoke  once  at  Baltimore,  and  among  his  audience 
was  an  Irish  Federal  regiment,  clad  halt  in  uniform,  half  in 
civilians,  as  forgotten  ex-privates  usually  are.  Major  Lacy 
was  told  that  most  of  the  audience  was  hostile  and  threatening. 

He  walked  on  the  platform  and  spoke  a  few  words 
about  the  unknown  men  he  came  to  get  funds  to  decently  bury, 
of  the  women  away  where  the  starlight  was  twinkling  over 
cabin  and  home,  of  those  who  waited,  listening  for  a  step; 
of  those  who  were  never  again  to  see  the  men  they  loved. 

Shuffling  feet  and  laughter  dulled  the  simple  pathos  of 
his  words.  Then  turning  half  away  from  his  audience  he 
recited  a  poem  called  "The  Irish  Immigrant's  Lament"  : 

"I    am    sitting-  on    the    stile,   Mary, 
Where   we   sat,  side  by  side, 
On  that  bright  May  morning  long  ago, 
When  first  you  were  my  bride.'' 

He  began  it  thus,  and  into  his  voice,  filled  with  the 
sorrows  of  the  "Mary's''  who  wept  down  in  his  Southland,  he 
put  the  full  strength  of  his  expression.  The  hostile  audience 
was  silent  as  he  finished. 

And   often   in   the    far-off   world, 
I'll  sit  and  close  my  eyes, 
And  my  heart  will  travel  back  again 
To   where   my    Mary   lies. 
And  I'll  think  I  see  the  little  stile 
Where  we  sat,  side  by  side, 
Mid  the  young  corn  on  that  bright  May  morn 
When  you  were  first  my  bride." 

The  Irishmen  who  had  fought  against  the  cause  which 
Lacy  loved  were  quiet  now,  and  when  he  said,  "Wouldn't  you 
want  a  bit  of  a  stone  for  'Mary'  to  remember  you,"  they  yelled 
and  rushed  to  grasp  his  hand.   From  his  "hostile"  audience  he 

107 


General  Ruggles'  Career 

collected  $14,000.00  that  night.    In  the  whole  tour  he  gathered 
a  great  sum  for  Confederate  cemeteries. 

During  his  later  years,  with  his  wife,  who  represented  the 
ladies  of  another  era,  as  he  did  its  men,  he  lived  on  Washington 
Avenue,  in  Fredericksburg.  To  few  did  he  ever  show  the 
deeper  side  of  his  character,  but  those  who  knew  him  until  he 
died  in  1906,  knew  how  much  kindly  manliness  dwelt  therein. 

Major  General  Daniel  Ruggles 

Although  Major  General  Daniel  Ruggles  was  born  in 
Massachusetts,  he  married  Miss  Richardetta  Mason  Hooe,  a 
great  granddaughter  of  George  Mason,  and  the  greater  part 
of  his  life  was  spent  in  Fredericksburg,  of  which  he  became  a 
citizen  and  in  which  he  died. 

During  his  life  in  Fredericksburg  he  concerned  himself 
with  the  business  of  the  town,  and  was  known  to  almost  all 
of  its  residents. 

He  was  graduated  into  the  army  from  West  Point  in 
1883  and  lead  a  small  band  into  the  west  and  explored  the 
Fox  river  the  same  year. 

When  the  Seminole  Indian  war  broke  out  Lieutenant 
Ruggles  with  fifty  men  penetrated  the  everglades  and  was 
commended  for  his  services.  In  the  Mexican  war  he  stopped 
the  Mexican  advance  at  Palo  Alto  and  was  promoted  to  Cap- 
tain on  the  field. 

Captain  Ruggles  and  his  men  reached  Chapaultepec, 
drove  into  the  city,  made  a  determined  stand  and  were  the 
first  of  the  advancing  American  Army  to  raise  the  American 
flag  over  the  fort.  He  was  breveted  Major  by  President  Polk 
"for  gallant  and  meritorious  conduct  at  Chereubusco''  and  a 
little  later  was  made  Lieutenant  Colonel  "for  gallant  and  con- 
spicuous bravery  at  Chapaultepec."  In  [861  he  joined  the 
Confederate  Army. 

Placed  in  command  of  the  most  important  of  the  South- 
ern   departments    at    Fredericksburg,    the    "gateway    to    the 

108 


The  Real  "First  Battle' 

South,"  he  organized  and  equipped  a  small  army.  When  the 
Confederacy  found  that  they  had  no  gun  caps,  necessary  on 
the  old  "muzzle  loaders,"  and  no  copper  from  which  to  make 
caps,  General  Ruggles  invented  a  cap  made  from  raw  hide  and 
dried  in  the  sun  (specimens  are  in  the  National  Museum), 
which  were  used  by  the  whole  Southern  Army  during  the  first 
three  months  of  the  war. 

General  Ruggles  planted  artillery  and,  using  these  caps 
with  match  heads  to  explode  them,  drove  off  the  Union  gun- 
boats and  a  lading  force  at  Aquia  Creek  May  31,  1861,  nine 
days  before  "Big  Bethel",  and  weeks  after  Virginia  seceded. 
He!  thus  fought  and  won  the  first  battle  of  the  Civil  war. 

His  career  during  the  war  won  him  wide  recognition. 
His  movements  won  the  battle  of  Shiloh  through  finding  a 
weak  point  in  the  enemy's  line.  He  was  made  Major  General 
March  25,  1865,  and  surrendered  at  Augusta,  Ga.,  after  Appo- 
mattox. Although  he  fought  in  five  Indian  wars,  the  Mexican 
war  and  the  Civil  war,  from  the  start  to  finish,  and  was  recog- 
nized as  a  man  who  would  lead  his  men  anywhere,  he  never 
received  a  wound  of  any  kind  in  his  life. 

Many  people  in  Fredericksburg  remember  him  now,  with 
his  fine  face,  his  erect  figure  and  his  long  gray  whiskers.  In 
his  latter  days  some  people  laughed  at  him,  not  understanding 
that  there  was  genius  in  the  man,  because  of  his  first  experi- 
ence with  "rainmaking."  He  invented  the  method  which  is 
used  now  by  the  United  States  Government,  under  his  patent. 
He  earned  the  name  of  "raincrow"  which  sometimes  reached 
his  ears.  He  patented  the  first  propeller  which  was  ever  used 
on  a  steam  boat  (model  in  the  National  Museum).  He  also 
invented  the  first  principles  of  the  telephone.  He  invented  in 
1858  a  system  whereby  an  electric  bell  on  a  ship  would  ring 
on  the  approach  of  the  ship  to  any  rock  or  point  on  the  shore 
equipped  with  the  same  apparatus.  This  was  tested  by  the 
navy  and  proclaimed  impractical,  but  it  contained  the  principles 
of  wireless  telegraphy.    It  is  used  by  the  American  navy  today. 

109 


Roger  Clark — Major  Braxton 

John   Roger  Clark,   Explorer 

Though  a  monument  has  just  been  erected  in  another 
city  which  claims  him  as  a  citizen,  there  is  excellent  evidence 
of  the  fact  that  John  Roger  Clarke,  reclaimer  of  the  great 
Northwest,  and  also  his  brother,  William  Clarke,  who  with 
Merri weather  Lewis,  explored  the  Mississippi,  were  born  in 
Spotsylvania  County  and  lived  near  Fredericksburg.  Accord- 
ing to  Ouinn's  History  of  Fredericksburg,  Maury's  History  of 
Virginia  and  letters  from  descendents,  the  two  famous  Clarke 
brothers  were  sons  of  Jonathan  Clarke,  who  lived  at  New- 
market, Spotsylvania  County,  where  John  Roger  Clarke  was 
l>orn.  Jonathan  Clarke  was  clerk  of  the  County  Court  of 
Spotsylvania  and  afterwards  moved  to  Fredericksburg,  where 
it  may  be  probable,  the  younger  son  was  born.  Later  they 
moved  to  Albemarle  County,  near  Charlottesville,  where  the 
two  sons  grew  to  manhood. 

The  history  of  the  two  Clarkes'  is  so  well  known,  even 
by  school  children,  that  it  is  needless  to  go  into  it  here,  the 
purpose  of  this  reference  being  to  establish  their  connection 
with  the  town. 

Major  Elliott  Musk  Braxton 

Major  Elliott  Muse  Braxton  is  widely  known,  as  he  was 
once  Congressman  from  this  district.  He  was  born  in  the 
County  of  Middlesex,  October  2,  T823,  was  a  grandson  of 
Carter  Braxton,  one  of  Virginia's  signers  of  the  Declaration 
of  Independence.  His  father  was  also  Carter  Braxton,  a  suc- 
cessful lawyer  in  Richmond. 

In  185 1  he  was  elected  to  the  Senate  of  Virginia.  So 
ably  and  efficiently  did  Major  Braxton  represent  his  constitu- 
ents that  he  won  another  election  without  any  opposition. 

In  1854  he  married  Anna  Marie  Marshall,  a  grand- 
daughter of  the  great  expounder  of  the  Constitution,  Chief 
Justice  Marshall.  In  1850  he  adopted  Fredericksburg  as  his 
home,  where  he  was  when   "war's  dread  alarm."  came.      He 

no 


Dr.  Francis  P.  Wellford 

organized  a  company  of  infantry,  of  which  he  was  unani- 
mously elected  captain,  from  which  position  he  was  soon  pro- 
moted to  that  of  major,  and  assigned  to  the  staff  of  General 
John  R.  Cooke.  On  the  conclusion  of  hostilities  he  again 
engaged  in  the  practice  of  law,  forming  a  co-partnership  with 
the  late  C.  Wistar  Wallace,  Esq.  In  1870  he  was  nominated 
at  Alexandria  by  the  Democrats  for  Congress,  the  City  of 
Fredericksburg  being  then  a  constituent  of  the  Eighth  District. 

He  continued  to  practice  his  profession  of  law  until  fail- 
ing health  admonished  him  to  lay  its  burdens  down. 

On  October  2,  1891,  he  died  in  his  home  at  Fredericks- 
burg, and  Virginia  mourned  a  son  who  was  always  true,  loyal 
and  faithful.  Elliott  Muse  Braxton  was  a  Virginia  gentleman 
and  in  saying  that  a  good  deal  is  comprehended.  Courteous 
in  manner,  considerate  in  tone  and  temper,  clean  in  character, 
loyal  to  State  and  to  Church,  cherishing  with  ardor  as  the 
years  went  by,  the  obligations  and  the  responsibilities  of  old 
Virginia,  he  fell  asleep. 

Dr.  Francis  P.  Wellford 

"But  a  certain  Samaritan  as  he  journeyed  came  where 
he  was  and  when  he  saw  him,  he  had  compassion  on  him  — 
and  went  to  him  and  bound  up  his  wounds".  In  this  way  we 
are  told  the  tender  story  of  the  Good  Samaritan. 

In  1877  Dr.  Francis  Preston  Wellford,  of  Fredericks- 
burg, was  living  in  Jacksonville,  Florida,  when  a  scourge  of 
yellow  fever  invaded  Fernandina.  Almost  all  of  its  physicians 
were  victims  of  the  disease,  or  worn  out  with  work.  Dr. 
Wellford  volunteered  for  service,  which  was  almost  certain 
death,  fell  a  victim,  and  died,  on  the  same  day  and  in  the  next 
cot  to  his  fellow-tOiwnsman,  Dr.  Herndon. 

"For  whether  on  the  scaffold  high, 
Or  in  the  battle's  van, 
The  noblest  death  that  man  can  die ; 
Is  when  he  dies  for  man." 

Ill 


Doctor  James  C.  Herndon 

Over  his  grave  in  the  cemetery  at  Fredericksburg,  there 
is  an  imposing  monument,  with  this  simple  inscription : 

"Francis  Preston  Wellford, 

Born  in  Fredericksburg,  Virginia, 

September  12,  1839." 

On  the  beautiful  memorial  window  in  St.  Peter's  Church, 
Fernandina,  Florida,  erected  by  Dr.  J.  H.  Upham,  of  Boston, 
who  felt  that  their  memory  should  not  be  neglected,  one  reads : 

"Francis  Preston  Wellford,  M.  D. 

Born  in  Fredericksburg,  Virginia, 

Sept.  12,   1839, 

James  Carmicheal  Herndon,  M.  D. 

Born  in  Fredericksburg,  Virginia, 

Sept.  22,   1821, 

Died  in  the  faithful  discharge  of  their  duties  at 

Fernandina,  Florida, 

Oct.  18,   1877." 


Dr.  James  C.  Herndon 

When  surgeons  were  needed  for  the  Confederate  Army, 
the  Dr.  Herndon  above  mentioned  left  his  practice  and  went, 
although  exempted  by  law.  He  served  through  four  years  of 
war,  and  when  peace  was  declared,  made  his  home  in  Florida. 

He  was  state  physician  there,  when  Fernandina  was 
stricken  by  the  dread  yellow  fever,  and  the  population  was 
almost  helpless. 

Deeming  it  his  duty,  Herndon  voluntarily  went  into  the 
city  of  the  dying.  He  had  worked  but  a  few  days  when  he 
was  stricken,  and  death  followed. 

He  died  as  bravely  as  a  man  may  die,  and  few  have  died 
for  so  good  a  cause.  He  sleeps  in  the  silent  cemetery  in  Fred- 
ericksburg, his  home. 

112 


Judge  Wallace — Mayor  Rowe 

Hon.  A.  Wellington  Wallace 

Among  the  men  whose  writings  have  added  to  Freder- 
icksburg's fame  is  Hon.  A.  Wellington  Wallace,  at  one  time 
Judge  of  the  Corporation  Court  of  Fredericksburg  and,  later 
chosen  President  of  the  Virginia  Bar  Association.  Judge 
Wallace  never  sought  political  office  and  his  abilities  therefore 
never  were  fully  publicly  known  in  that  line,  but  some  of  his 
literary  compositions  have  been  widely  read  and  favorably 
criticised.  The  most  important  of  his  work,  perhaps,  is  his 
epitome  on  the  intents,  purposes  and  meaning  of  the  constitu- 
tion. Though  brief  it  clearly  and  sharply  defines  and  analyses 
the  important  document  under  which  we  are  governed,  and 
gives  to  the  reader  an  intelligent  conception  of  what  its 
framers  aimed  at  and  hoped  to  do,  such  as  could  not  be  gained 
in  pages  of  lengthier  reading. 

Hon.  A.  P.  Rowe 
(1817-1900) 

One  of  the  best  known  and  most  beloved  characters  of 
the  after-the-war  period  was  Absalom  P.  Rowe,  affectionately 
known  as  "Marse  Ab."  He  served  as  Quartermaster,  Con- 
federate States  Army,  throughout  the  Civil  War.  and  after 
its  close,  played  a  leading  part  in  restoring  order  and  system 
out  of  the  terrible  desolation  with  which  this  section  was 
inflicted.  He  was  prominent  in  all  matters  pertaining  to  the 
civic  and  State  governments  and  was  a  powerful  influence  in 
all  the  stirring  events  of  that  period. 

"Marse  Ab"  represented  the  district  comprising  Freder- 
icksburg and  Spotsylvania  county  in  the  State  Legislature  for 
the  session  1879- 1880,  and  served  as  Mayor  of  Fredericks- 
burg continuously  from  1888  to  1900,  with  the  exception  of 
one  term,  and  had  just  been  re-elected  for  another  term  at 
the  time  of  his  death. 

Fredericksburg  was  then  under  its  old  charter  and  the 
police  court  was  presided  over  by  the  Mayor.     "Marse  Ab's" 

113 


A  Famous  ''Tramp  Comedian" 

court  was  known  far  and  wide,  and  his  characteristic  method 
of  dealing  out  justice  was  the  cause  of  fear  to  offenders  and 
a  source  of  amusement  to  large  numbers  of  onlookers  who 
always  attended  the  sessions  of  court.  "Marse  Ab's"  decisions 
were  quickly  reached  and  swiftly  delivered,  and  the  penalties 
inflicted  were  tempered  with  the  wisdom  and  discretion  of 
his  long  experience  and  his  rare  qualities  as  a  judge  of  human 
nature. 

Mayor  Rowe  was  the  father  of  Captain  M.  B.  Rowe,  ex- 
Mayor  J.  P.  Rowe.  Messrs.  A.  P.  Rowe  and  Alvin  T.  Rowe, 
all  prominent  business  men  of  the  city  today. 

Nat  C.  Wills 

Not  only  has  Fredericksburg  contributed  men  who  took 
high  rank  in  the  political,  economic  and  scientific  up-building 
of  the  country,  but  it  has  furnished  at  least  one  of  those  who 
ranked  highest  as  an  amuser  of  the  Nation.  This  was  Nat 
Wills,  nationally  known  to  the  American  theater  going  public 
as  the  foremost  exemplifier  of  the  tramp.  Wills'  real  name 
was  Matthew  McGrath  Wills.  When  still  a  young  man  he 
went  from  Fredericksburg  and  made  his  home  in  Washington. 
There  he  humbly  began  a  stage  career  as  a  tramp  comedian 
that  ended,  when  he  was  at  the  pinnacle  of  success,  with  his 
sudden  death  in  New  York  some  eight  years  ago. 

Merely  to  have  been  a  successful  "Tramp  Comedian" 
does  not  imply  fame.  But  Wills  was  more  than  merely  a 
tramp  comedian.  Tie  was  creator  of  a  new  art  on  the  Ameri- 
can stage  and  those  who  now7  caricature  the  lowly  denizen  of 
the  cross  ties,  are  followers  of  the  lead  he  took.  In  mannerism, 
type  and  action  they  copy  Wills'  conception  of  what  a  true 
tramp  should  be.  but  none  yet  has  succeeded  in  portraying  the 
character  with  the  humor  that  Wills  put  into  his  work. 

Technicallv  speaking  Wills  was  a  low  comedian,  but  his 
wit  and  humor  and  art  are  not  suggested  by  that  term.  Dressed 
in  clothes  that  were  themselves  a  burlesque  of  the  world's 
kindness,  he  represented  with  dramatic  humor  a  character  that 

114 


A bm;>:   .  I 


John    I  ai'l  Jon  i-:s    I  Iom  k 

(ir.trrry    Since    ijfx).      />\7.>;y,   .S'/.'tvh.?    //< 


The  Gallant  Heriuloris  Death 

went  through  life  unconscious  of  his  rags,  careless  of  the  pres- 
ent and  unafraid  of  the  future,  but  with  a  kindness  of  heart 
and  a  philosophy  that  is  true  only  to  those  who  have  viewed 
life  from  close  to  its  rougher  aspects.  After  he  had  achieved 
success  his  plays  were  especially  written  for  him  and  he  had 
a  large  part  in  their  making.  His  lines  were  witty  and  clever 
and  as  curtain  encores  he  sang  parodies  he  had  written  on 
whatever  were  the  popular  songs  of  the  day,  and  these  were 
brilliant  satires  on  the  original  themes. 

Wills  never  forgot  the  city  of  his  nativity.  Whenever 
close  enough  to  be  appreciated,  he  always  told  a  joke  that 
permitted  him  to  bring  in  his  connection  with  the  town.  His 
sudden  death  was  a  shock  to  theater  goers,  and  no  one  has 
since  supplanted  in  their  affections'  the  particular  character  he 
essayed.   Though  dead  he  remains  master  of  the  art  he  created. 


Commander  Wm.  Lewis  Herndon 

It  is  not  so  much  because  of  his  life  as  of  his  death,  that 
every  Fredericksburger  cherishes  the  memory  of  Commander 
William  Lewis  Herndon.  He  was  born  here  in  1813,  and 
fifteen  years  afterwards  was  made  a  midshipman  and  in  1855 
reached  the  rank  of  Admiral.  Commander  Herndon  made  the 
first  exploration  of  the  Amazon,  amidst  great  dangers,  and 
his  book  on  this  subject  became  a  standard. 

With  478  souls  aboard,  Commander  Herndon  started 
from  New  York  for  South  America  in  1857  on  the  big  passen- 
ger ship  "Central  America."  She  sailed  proudly  out,  the  flying 
fish  fleeing  her  prow  down  the  Gulf  Stream  through  sunny 
days,  until  suddenly  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  the  ship  shattered 
against  a  rock. 

Standing  with  his  sword  in  his  hand,  Commander  Hern- 
don saw  the  boats  lowered  one  by  one  until  each  woman  and 
child  was  safely  on  the  sea  in  life  boats.  Ordering  his  men 
to  continue  disembarking  passengers  he  went  below  to  put  on 
his  dress  uniform,  and  coming  back  directed  the  making  of 

115 


Men  of  the  Old  Nary 


rafts.  Hundreds  of  men  jumped  and  nearly  150  were  lost. 
Commander  Herndon  stood  last  on  the  ship  upon  the  Bridge 
that  is  a  Captain's  castle,  the  gold  of  his  uniform  losing  its 
glow  as  the  sun  fell  behind  the  far  off  shore  lines.  Still  hover- 
ing near,  the  sailors  in  a  half  dozen  boats  in  which  were 
women  and  children,  cried  out  to  him  to  come  over.  He 
bent  his  head  a  moment  in  prayer  then  doffed  his  cocked  hat, 
and  smiling,  went  down  as  his  ship  plunged  bow  forward  into 
the  Gulf  waters.  There  is  no  tradition  of  our  Navy  more 
glowing  than  this  one,  which  Commander  Herndon,  of  Fred- 
ericksburg, added  to  its  legends. 


Captain  Runn,  U.  S.  Navy 

Captain  John  Rudd  was  a  resident  of  our  City  after  his 
retirement  from  the  U.  S.  Navy.  He  was  too  old  to  serve  in 
the  Confederacy  and  lived  in  a  house  next  to  the  old  Citizens 
Hall,  near  where  the  Catholic  Church  now  stands. 

He  sailed  many  years  in  the  old  Navy,  and  had  many 
tales  to  tell  to  the  young  people  of  his  neighborhood  concern- 
ing: his  adventures. 


Commodore  Theo.   R.  Rootf.s 

Commodore  Theo.  R.  Rootes  resigned  from  the  U.  S. 
Navy  in  1861,  and  was  immediately  named  as  commander  in 
the  Confederate  Navy.  He  was  stationed  in  Richmond  in  the 
early  part  <>f  the  war  and  in  1864  was  given  the  command  of 
the  ironclad  "Fredericksburg"  of  the  James  river  fleet.  He 
took  part  in  the  expedition  against  the  I'.  S.  fleet  on  the  James 
fiver  and  was  a  member  of  the  Naval  Brigade  which  after  the 
evacuation  of  Richmond  was  surrounded  at  Sailors  Creek, 
April  6,  1865.  He  lived  in  the  old  Scott  house,  now  owned  by 
Charles  Cole,  Esq.,  on  the  corner  of  Prince  Edward  and 
Amelia  Streets. 

116 


Two  Great  Naval  Officers 


Rear  Admiral  Griffin 


Of  the  men  whom  Fredericksburg  has  sent  forth  in  its 
more  modern  era,  Rear  Admiral  Robert  S.  Griffin,  who  was 
born  in  1857,  entered  as  a  cadet  engineer  at  Annapolis  and 
was  graduated  in  1878,  is  among  the  most  notable.  Admiral 
Griffin  has  spent  no  fewer  than  fourteen  years  of  a  busy  career 
on  sea  duty,  and  has  been  for  a  decade  a  recognized  authority 
on  naval  engineering.  In  his  position  as  Chief  of  the  Bureau 
of  Naval  Engineering  he  is  responsible  for  the  innovations 
and  improvements  in  our  capital  ships,  the  electric  drive  for 
cruisers,  the  turbine  reduction  gear  for  destroyers. 

The  high  state  of  efficiency  in  the  Engineering  Depart- 
ment is  due  to  Admiral  Griffin's  constant  efforts  and  his  tact 
in  overcoming  Naval  and  Congressional  opposition  is  a  per- 
sonal accomplishment. 

Admiral  Griffin  resigned  from  the  Bureau  on  September 
21,  1 92 1,  and  was  retired  September  27,  1921. 

He  lives  in  Washington,  but  is  a  valued  visitor  to  his 
former  City  from  time  to  time.  Admiral  Griffin's  record  is 
almost  unexcelled.  He  rose  by  hard  work  and  brains  and  has 
for  years  been  a  source  of  pride  to  Fredericksburg.  He  is  one 
of  the  few  men  still  living  whom  we  may  class  as  "great." 

Captain  Barney,  U.  S.  Navy 

Captain  Joseph  N.  Barney  was  born  in  Baltimore  in  18 18. 
He  graduated  from  Annapolis  first  in  his  class  in  1834  and 
spent  many  years  at  sea  until  1861,  when  he  resigned  to  offer 
his  services  to  the  Confederacy. 

He  commanded  the  "Jamestown"'  at  the  Battle  of  Hamp- 
ton Roads,  March  8th  and  9th,  1862,  and,  on  April  nth,  was 
sent  in  to  capture  vessels  under  the  guns  of  the  Monitor, 
hoping  to  provoke  the  latter  to  come  out  and  fight. 

He  commanded  a  battery  at  the  fight  at  Drury's  Bluff, 
and  later  in  the  war  took  part  in  the  operations  at  the  Sabine 

117 


Captain  Lynch — Commander  Minor 

pass  and  was  sent  to  command  the  C.  S.  Cruiser  Florida,  but 
was  prevented  by  ill  health.  He  was  purchasing  agent  for  the 
Confederacy  at  the  cessation  of  the  hostilities,  and  after  the 
war  made  one  voyage  in  the  command  of  a  commercial 
steamer.  Captain  Barney  made  his  home  in  Fredericksburg 
from  1874  to  1899,  when  his  death  occurred.  His  career  was 
a  distinguished  one  and  he  had  in  his  later  years,  spent  here, 
a  host  of  friends  in  Fredericksburg. 

Captain  Lynch,  U.  S.  Navy 

Captain  M.  F.  Lynch  was  born  near  Fredericksburg,  in 
1801  was  appointed  a  midshipman  in  the  U.  S.  Navy  in  1819, 
promoted  to  Lieutenant  in  1828,  and  shortly  afterwards  made 
an  important  scientific  investigation  of  the  topography  of  the 
Dead  Sea  Valley  in  Palestine.  lie  made  the  first  correct 
maps  and  soundings  of  the  Jordan  and  the  Dead  Sea,  and 
his  report  was  published  by  the  United  States  Government 
and  much  valued  by  the  scientific  world.  He  was  made  a 
Captain  in  1856  and  held  this  rank  when  he  resigned  to  enter 
the  Confederate  Navy.  His  work  with  the  Virginia  Navy  in 
the  defenses  of  Aquia  Creek  and  the  Potomac  was  compli- 
mented by  his  opponents,  and  later  he  took  part  in  the  defense 
of  the  coast  of  North  Carolina,  winning  much  credit  by  his 
zealous  action  at  the  battles  of  Hatteras  Inlet  and  Roanoke 
Island. 

In  1864  Captain  Lynch  was  transferred  to  duty  on  the 
Mississippi  River,  where  he  aided  in  the  preparation  of  the 
famous  ram,  the  Arkansas,  for  her  brilliant  career.  He  died 
in  Baltimore,  October  17,  1865. 

Commander  George  Minor,  C.  S.   X. 

Commander  George  Minor  resigned  from  the  United 
States  Navy  in  April,  1861,  and  was  immediately  put  in  com- 
mand of  the  newly  created  Bureau  of  Ordinance  and  Hydro- 
graphy at  Richmond.     This  Bureau  was  of  invaluable  service 

118 


Thurman — Ruggles — Maury 

to  the  young  Confederacy,  sending  out  220  guns  in  the  first 
year.  Commander  Minor  was  instrumental  in  establishing 
the  arsenals  at  Atlanta  and  New  Orleans  and  other  points. 
He  spent  his  last  years  in  our  City,  well  remembered  by  many 
of  the  present  generation.  He  died  in  1878.  While  residing 
in  Fredericksburg  he  lived  in  what  was  the  late  College 
Building. 

Commander  Robert  D.  Thurman 

Commander  Robert  D.  Thorburn  was  a  member  of  the 
old  Naval  Service,  coming  to  Virginia  in  1861,  and  being  at 
once  named  to  take  part  in  the  defenses  of  the  Potomac  under 
Captain  Lynch.  He  later  was  detailed  to  duty  on  the  Gulf 
Coast,  and  after  the  war  came  to  Fredericksburg  where  he 
died  in  1883.  He  resided  in  the  house  on  lower  Princess  Anne 
Street,  now  occupied  by  W.  D.  Scott,  Esq. 

Major  Edward  Ruggles 

Major  Edward  Ruggles  was  graduated  from  Annapolis  in 
1859,  came  South  in  1861  and  offered  his  services  to  the  State 
of  Virginia,  before  that  State  joined  the  Confederacy.  He 
was  later  transferred  to  the  Confederate  Army,  and  served  on 
the  staff  of  General  Daniel  S.  Ruggles  in  the  engagements  at 
Aquia  Creek,  being  present  at  the  first  engagement  of  the 
Civil  War,  June  1,  1861.  Later  he  served  with  the  Army 
of  Tennessee  and  after  the  war  lived  in  King  George  and 
Fredericksburg,  where  he  died  in  19 19,  at  his  residence  on 
lower  Main  Street.  He  was  one  of  three  men  who  aided  John 
Wilkes  Booth  to  cross  the  Rappahannock  at  Fort  Royal,  and 
directed  him  to  the  Garrett  barn,  where  Booth  met  his  death. 

Colonel  Richard  L.  Maury 

Colonel  Richard  L.  Maury,  a  son  of  Commodore  Matthew 
Fontaine  Maury,  was  born  in  Fredericksburg  in  1840.  Upon 
the  outbreak  of  the  War  between  the  States  he  at  once  offered 

119 


Commodore  Domin — Surgeon  Beck 

his  services  to  his  native  State,  and  his  Naval  Career,  though 
short,  is  notable.  Detached  from  Company  F,  Richmond,  ist 
Va.  Regiment,  by  order  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  he  took 
part  in  the  capture  of  the  St.  Nicholas  and  other  vessels  on 
the  Potomac  and  Chesapeake.  He  was  afterwards  returned 
to  the  Army  and  served  with  the  24th  Va.  Infantry  until 
Appomattox.  After  the  War  he  resided  in  Lexington  and 
Richmond,  in  which  latter  city  he  died  a  few  years  ago. 

Commodore  Domin 

Commodore  Thomas  Domin.  U.  S.  N.,  like  many  other 
officers  of  the  old  Navy,  often  left  his  family  in  Fredericks- 
burg while  absent  on  the  long  tours  of  sea  duty,  sometimes 
two  and  even  three  years  in  length.  Thus,  while  a  native  of 
Ireland,  where  he  was  born  in  1801,  Commodore  Domin  called 
our  town  "home"  for  many  years. 

Entering  the  U.  S.  Navy  in  181 8,  after  many  voyages  to 
all  parts  of  the  world  he  was  with  Admiral  Perry  when  the 
latter  forced  his  way  into  the  Japanese  harbors.  When  the 
war  between  the  States  was  imminent,  he  retained  his  place 
in  the  old  Navy,  with  the  promise  that  he  would  not  be  ordered 
to  action  against  his  adopted  State. 

He  served  on  the  Light  House  Board  at  Baltimore  for 
the  duration  of  the  war,  and  upon  his  retirement  in  1870  lived 
in  Fredericksburg,  for  a  time.     He  died  in  Savannah,  Ga.,  in 

1873- 

He  resided,  when  in  Fredericksburg,  in  the  house  now 
owned  by  Dr.  C.  Mason  Smith  on  Prince  Edward  Street. 

William  Henry  Beck 

Surgeon  William  Henry  Beck,  U.  S.  Navy,  came  to  Vir- 
ginia from  England  as  a  lad  of  twelve  in  1800.  Some  years 
later  he  entered  the  Navy  as  an  Assistant  Surgeon,  and  made 
several  voyages  in  the  old  sailing  ships  to  various  ports  of 
the  world. 

120 


Lieutenant  John  R.  Bryan 

He  married  Miss  England,  of  Stafford,  and  made  his 
home  in  Fredericksburg. 

He  lived  in  what  was  then  a  northwestern  suburb,  near 
the  present  basin,  and  this  section  was  known  as  "Becksville." 
He  was  at  one  time  a  police  officer  in  our  town,  and  as  the 
result  of  an  injury  in  arresting  a  prisoner,  lost  an  arm. 

He  died  in  the  fifties,  and  was  buried  in  St.  George's 
Churchyard.  A  son  bought  and  lived  for  years  on  what  is 
known  by  our  old  citizens  as  "Beck's  Island,"  now  owned 
and  occupied  by  Mr.  J.  A.  Emery. 

John  Randolph  Bryan 

Lieutenant  John  Randolph  Bryan,  U.  S.  Navy,  born  in 
1806,  in  Georgia,  was  educated  in  Virginia,  and  married  at 
Chatham  in  1830,  Elizabeth  Coalter,  daughter  of  Judge  John 
Coalter,  of  the  Virginia  Supreme  Court.  Leaving  Yale  in 
1823,  Lieutenant  Bryan  was  appointed  to  the  Navy,  became 
midshipman  in  1824,  and  was  ordered  to  the  Peacock. 

He  resigned  in  1831  and  took  charge  of  his  estate  at 
Wilmington  Island,  and  later  an  estate  in  Gloucester  County, 
Virginia. 

In  1862,  he  offered  his  services  to  the  Confederate  Navy, 
but  was  judged  too  old.  He  was  the  ward  of  John  Randolph, 
who  made  a  deep  impression  upon  his  mentality. 

Lieutenant  Bryan  was  noted  for  his  courtesy  and  charm 
of  manner.  He  spent  his  latter  years  in  the  house  of  his 
daughter  in  Fredericksburg,  Mrs.  Spotswood  W.  Carmichael. 
He  died  at  the  University  of  Virginia,  while  on  a  visit,  on 
September  13,  1887. 

The  name  of  Mrs.  Spotswood  W.  Carmichael  will  recall 
to  many  Dr.  Carmichael,  that  splendid  physician  and  gentle- 
man of  "the  old  school"  who  ministered  to  the  sick  of  a  pre- 
vious generation  and  had  a  host  of  loyal  friends. 

121 


Captain  Reuben  Thorn,  C.  S  N. 

Captain  Tiiom,  U.  S.  M.  C. 

Captain  Reuben  Thorn,  of  the  Confederate  Marine  Corps, 
was  the  son  of  "Postmaster  Thorn"  and  was  born  in  Freder- 
icksburg. He  entered  the  war  at  Norfolk  in  1861,  and  in 
1862  was  in  command  of  the  Marines  on  the  famous  Merri- 
mac  in  the  battle  of  Hampton  Roads.  Captain  Thorn  took 
part  in  the  engagement  at  Dairy's  Bluff.  After  the  war 
Captain  Thorn  moved  to  Baltimore  where  he  died. 


122 


Unforgotten  Women 

Some  of  Many  Who  Left  a  Record  of  Brilliancy,  Service  or  Sacrifice. 

The  stars  that  shine  in  the  galaxy  of  the  heavens  do  not 
all  glow  with  the  same  lustre.  One  is  gifted  with  a  steady 
and  dependable  splendor,  another  scintillates  and  fades  to  shine 
afresh.  So,  it  is,  that  the  women  of  Fredericksburg  have  in 
their  individual  ways  added  to  the  glories  of  the  town  and 
well  sustained  its  deserved  reputation,  as  being  the  home  of 
capable,  brilliant,  and  beautiful  women.  A  distinguished 
French  officer  once  said,  after  meeting  one  of  the  women  of 
Fredericksburg,  "If  such  are  the  matrons  of  America,  well 
may  she  boast  of  illustrious  sons."  This  was  at  the  great 
Peace  Ball,  given  in  the  town  in  1783,  to  which,  of  course, 
the  mother  of  Washington  was  especially  invited.  The  simple 
manner  and  appearance  of  the  great  woman,  surprised  the 
gallant  officers  present,  and  provoked  from  one  of  them  the 
remark. 

Clad  in  a  plain  but  becoming  garb,  that  characterized 
Virginia  women  of  her  type,  she  received  the  many  attentions 
paid  to  the  Mother  of  the  idolized  Commander-in-Chief  with 
the  most  unaffected  dignity  and  courtesy.  Being  accustomed 
to  the  pomp  and  splendor  which  is  attached  to  Old  World 
royalty,  it  was  a  revelation  to  them  to  behold  such  a  woman, 
[low  could  she  live  in  the  blaze  of  glory  which  irradiated  her 
illustrious  offspring,  and  still  preserve  her  simple  dignity  of 
manner,  so  barren  of  self  pride  and  hauteur ! 

But  this  daughter  of  Colonel  Joseph  Ball,  of  Lancaster 
County,  this  "Rose  of  Epping  Forest"  which  budded  into  ex- 
istence on  March  6,  1708,  this  unassuming  woman,  who  on  the 
anniversary  of  her  natal  day  in  1730,  gave  her  heart  and  hand 
to  the  master  of  Wakefield,  this  thrifty  and  systematic  young 
housewife  and  widowed  mother  at  Pine  Grove,  in  Stafford 
County,    this   matron    of    Fredericksburg,    possessed   qualities 

123 


The  "Rose  of  Epping  Forest" 

individual  to  her  who  became  the  author  of  the  being  of  the 
greatest  and  best  loved  character  figuring  on  the  pages  of 
American  history.  Her  last  home  selected  for  her  by  General 
Washington,  stands  today,  on  the  corner  of  Charles  and  Lewis 
Streets,  the  same  home  with  the  characteristic  simplicity  of 
years  ago.  The  Association  for  the  Preservation  of  Virginia 
Antiquities,  to  which  Society  it  now  belongs,  has  restored  in 
part  the  interior  with  its  wainscoting  and  paneling  and  its 
period  furniture.  The  interesting  old  brick  floored  kitchen, 
with  its  hugh  fireplace,  and  its  crane,  iron  pots,  skillets  and 
equipment  of  former  days,  all  seem  today  in  perfect  accord 
with  her  reception  of  her  cherished  offspring  in  1783.  After 
an  enforced  cessation  of  visits  to  his  aging  mother  for  a  long 
period  of  seven  years,  she  at  length  was  told  by  an  orderly 
that  "His  Excellency"  had  arrived,  and  was  at  her  very  door. 
Turning  quietly  to  her  faithful,  ebony  maid,  she  said  with  her 
habitual  self  control,  "Patsy,  George  has  come,  I  shall  need  a 
white  apron."  But  beneath  this  calm  exterior,  her  embrace  of 
her  first  born  son  was  overflowing  with  fervent  mother-love, 
and  hidden  away  in  the  deep  recesses'  of  her  heart  was  the 
swelling  pride  in  his  glory.  Senator  Daniel  truthfully  said, 
"The  principles  which  he  applied  to  a  nation  were  those  simple 
and  elementary  truths  which  she  first  imprinted  upon  his  mind 
in  the  discipline  of  home." 

The  splendid  granite  monument,  erected  to  her,  with  its 
simple  inscription,  "Mary,  the  Mother  of  Washington,"  and 
on  the  reverse  side:  "Erected  by  her  Countrywomen,"  rises 
from  a  massive  foundation  to  a  distance  of  59  feet.  Her 
ashes  lie  beneath,  in  a  spot  of  her  own  selection,  (which  in 
her  lifetime  was  a  part  of  the  Kenmore  estate)  and  her 
favorite  resting  place.  Nearby  are  the  two  rocks  upon  which 
she  used  to  sit  nnd  read  her  Bible.  These  are  known  as  Medi- 
tation Rocks." 


The  name  of  Susan  Metcalf  Savage  will  always  be  held 
in  the  highest  veneration  by  those  of  Fredericksburg  who 
realize  and  appreciate  the  many   sacrifices,  heart-aches,   self- 

124 


Susan  Savage  and  Anne  Maury 

denials  and  home-longings  experienced  by  those  who  give  their 
lives  in  heathen  lands.  Brought  up  in  an  atmosphere  of  love 
and  unselfishness,  and  herself  devoted  to  every  call  of  duty,  it 
was  no  surprise  to  her  many  friends  to  learn  that  soon 
after  her  marriage  to  Reverend  Dr.  Savage  in  1838  she 
would  sail  with  him  for  tropical  Africa,  one  of  the  first 
woman  missionaries  from  our  land.  Though  her  life  in  this 
then  unusual  field  of  usefulness  was  less  than  two  short  years, 
her  labors  were  not  in  vain,  and  her  works  and  her  example 
will  live  for  years  to  come. 

Ann  Herndon,  who  became  the  wife  of  the  great  scientist, 
Matthew  Fontaine  Maury,  was  born  in  the  house  on  the  corner 
of  Princess  Anne  and  George  Streets,  erected  by  her  father, 
Dabney  M.  Herndon.  Her  loveliness  of  face  and  character 
was  equalled  by  her  charming  manner,  and  attractive  person- 
ality, and  whether  in  Fredericksburg,  or  Lexington,  Va., 
whether  in  Washington  or  London,  her  home  was  the  spot 
where  the  savant,  the  scientist,  the  literati  and  men  and  women 
representing  every  phase  of  culture  and  social  distinction,  were 
wont  to  assemble.  The  beautiful  jewels  presented  to  her  by  the 
crowned  heads  of  Europe,  (her  illustrious  husband,  being  an 
officer  in  the  United  States  Navy,  was  restricted  from  accept- 
ing gifts,  else  his  admirers  would  have  showered  them  upon 
him),  were  deservedly  famous.  After  the  death  of  Commo- 
dore Maury  a  plan  was  conceived  by  a  member  of  one  of  the 
royal  courts  of  Europe,  and  initiatory  steps  had  already  been 
taken,  to  raise  a  munificent  sum  of  mony  with  which  to  honor 
the  widow  of  the  man  to  whom  all  educated  nations  were  to 
pay  homage.  But  when  their  project  reached  her  ear.  she 
refused  to  accept  it,  though  recognizing  and  appreciating  fully 
the  compliment  to  her  devoted  husband. 

One  of  the  captivating  belles  of  the  town  was  Ellen  Lewis 
Herndon,  daughter  of  the  Naval  Commander,  Captain  Wil- 
liam Lewis  Herndon,  who  in  1857  met  his  death  in  the  Gulf 

125 


President  Arthur's  Wife 

Stream.  Being  possessed  of  a  rich  contralto  voice,  Miss 
Herndon  made  frequent  visits  to  the  National  Capitol,  and 
delighted  the  congregations  at  old  St.  John's  Church  with  her 
sweet,  rich  tones.  It  was  here  that  the  young  attorney,  Chester 
A.  Arthur,  afterwards  President,  became  infatuated  with  the 
pretty  young  singer.  Those  old  days  were  the  parents  of 
these  days,  and  many  were  the  whisper.-,  of  conjecture  and 
surmise  as  to  the  outcome  of  those  frequent  visits  of  the  hand- 
some Mr.  Arthur  to  the  home  of  Ellen  Herndon,  (that  still 
strikingly  pretty  residence  on  Main  and  Charlotte  Streets),  and 
shortly  before  the  War  between  the  States,  a  pretty  wedding 
was  solemnized  in  New  York  City,  and  Ellen  Herndon  became 
the  bride  of  Chester  A.  Arthur.  ' 


In  the  heart-rending  times  of  i86i-'65,  the  women  of 
Eredericksburg  with  untiring  energy  and  courage,  in  the  midst 
of  the  agony  of  war,  assumed  the  laborious  task  of  ministering 
alike  to  soldiers  in  blue  and  gray,  and  many  burdens  of  sorrow 
were  in  some  way  lightened  and  many  a  physical  pain  lessened 
or  a  soul  cheered.  Perhaps  the  women  of  Fredericksburg 
were  inspired  to  great  deeds  by  the  example  of  that  splendid 
specimen  of  womanhood,  Clara  Barton,  who  for  sometime 
was  stationed  near  Chatham,  carrying  on  her  splendid  minis- 
tration to  the  sick  and  suffering  Federal  soldiers. 


Of  Woman's  Work 

It  was  on  May  10,  1866,  that  the  women  of  Fredericks- 
burg, urged  by  Mrs.  Frances  Seym<  air  White,  (widow  of  an 
officer  in  the  U.  S.  Army,  who  died  as  the  war  began),  assem- 
bled in  the  leaure  room  of  St.  George's  Church  to  form  an 
association  to  care  for  the  memory  of  the  noble  Southern 
heroes,  whose  graves  were  then  scattered  over  battlefield  and 
farm.  This  was  the  first  step  towards  the  formation  of  the 
Ladies  Memorial  Association  the  work  of  which  organization, 
begun  so  earnestly  and  lovingly,  has  so  successfully  been  ful- 

126 


The  Memorial  Association 

filled.  Mrs.  John  H.  Wallace,  was  elected  President  and  Mrs. 
Frances  Seymour  White,  Vice-President.  On  Mrs.  Wallace's 
death,  Mrs.  Wrhite  was  chosen  President,  and  continued  until 
1882,  when  she  was  succeeded  by  her  daughter,  Mrs.  Francis  B. 
Goolrick,  who  continued  to  act  as  President  for  eleven  years. 
Mrs.  Maria  K.  Daniel  followed  next  for  seventeen  years,  and 
Mrs.  Frances  B.  Goolrick,  who  was  elected  in  19 12  is  still 
President. 

With  the  financial  assistance  of  about  all  the  Southern 
States  and  a  good  deal  from  the  North  the  bodies  of  the  Con- 
federate soldiers  have  been  re-interred  in  the  Confederate 
cemetery,  and  each  is  marked  with  a  solid  granite  headstone. 
Later  with  some  financial  assistance  the  splendid  monument 
"To  the  Confederate  Dead,"  was  erected  in  the  center  of  the 
cemetery.  The  base  is  of  gray  granite,  quarried  in  Spotsyl- 
vania County,  and  the  life-like  statue  of  the  Confederate  sol- 
dier on  dress  parade,  which  surmounts  the  apex,  is  of  bronze. 

The  beautiful  custom  of  Memorial  Day  sprang  from  Mrs. 
Frances  Seymour  White's  idea  and  spread  from  this  city  all 
over  the  nation.  The  name  of  "The  Ladies  Memorial  Asso- 
iation"  was  adopted  and  in  the  Spring  season  each  year,  this 
impressive  service  is  continued.  Following  those  true  hearted 
women  who  conceived  the  task  of  rescuing  from  oblivion  the 
memory  of  those  brave  and  fallen  heroes,  the  United  Daugh- 
ters of  the  Confederacy,  and  the  women  of  Fredericksburg 
branch  of  the  American  Red  Cross,  have  each  in  their  respec- 
tive spheres,  earnestly  and  lovingly  performed  their  tasks. 


The  recent  passing  from  our  midst  of  the  material  pres- 
ence of  a  worthy  representative  of  the  women  of  Fredericks- 
burg, inspired  the  glowing  tribute  to  the  women  of  Virginia, 
appearing  as  an  editorial  in  a  local  paper.  The  writer  says 
in  part,  "We  shall  ever  cherish  the  recollection  that  old  Vir- 
ginia had  a  womanhood  of  whom  the  people  of  the  nation 
must  be  proud.  Lest  we  be  misunderstood  we  would  have  it 
known  that  we  boast  today  of  our  womanhood  and  are  hon- 

127 


Mary  Washington  Hospital 

ored  by  those  now  among  us ;  yet  no  one  can  successfully  deny 
that  the  type  of  women  of  the  Old  Dominion  of  the  bygone 
years  was  of  an  exceptional  character.  They  were  the  result 
of  the  very  environment  in  which  they  were  born  and  reared. 
For  purity  of  purpose,  for  modesty  of  demeanor  and  conver- 
sation, for  unselfish  devotion  to  home  where  there  was  real 
happiness,  for  gentleness,  for  refinement,  for  self  abnegation, 
for  love  of  God  and  the  Church,  for  unostentatious  charity, 
and  for  high  motherhood,  she  has  never  had  superiors.  For 
all  the  essential  attributes  and  elements  which  go  to  form  a 
splendid  woman  without  guile  and  without  reproach,  we  haz- 
ard nothing  in  declaring  that  Virginia —-in  the  World's  Hall 
of  Fame — gives  to  her  womanhood  of  olden  days  her  laurel  of 
immortal  glory." 

Another  work  which  will  always  be  a  tribute  to  woman's 
indefatigable  and  preserving  efforts,  is  the  Mary  Washington 
Hospital,  beautifully  situated  on  the  river's  bank  immediately 
facing  the  lawns  and  Terraces  of  Chatham,  and  when  the 
trees  are  bare  in  winter,  affording  a  view  of  the  imposing 
mansion.  Flere,  since  1897,  thousands  of  sick  have  been  cared 
for  and  nursed  back  to  health  and  strength  with  more  scientific 
care  and  almost  as  much  loving  attention  as  they  could  receive 
in  their  own  homes.  In  1897  the  corner-stone  was  laid  and 
from  that  time  the  Hospital  has  steadily  grown  and  pro- 
gressed, gaining  in  strength  and  usefulness,  and  now  is  recog- 
nized as  essential  to  the  city  and  surrounding  counties.  The 
idea  of  establishing  the  Hospital  was  originated  by  two  or 
three  ladies  and  the  work  put  actively  in  motion  by  Mrs.  W. 
Seymour  White  and  Mrs.  M.  F.  Tankard,  who  constituted 
themselves  a  committee  to  form  an  auxiliary  society,  which 
supported  by  Mr.  W.  Seymour  White,  who  was  at  that  time 
Mayor  of  the  City,  obtained  a  sufficient  sum  to  purchase  a 
lot  and  build  a  small  house  of  a  few  rooms.  A  Hospital  Asso- 
ciation was  formed,  and  the  women  did  almost  phenomenal 
work  in  struggling  through  many  discouragements,  never 
losing    faith,    but    pressing    forward    and    overcoming    every 

128 


Mary  Washington  Monument 

obstacle  until  their  efforts  were  crowned  with  success  and  the 
Hospital  established  on  a  firm  foundation.  Now  the  few 
rooms  have  grown  into  a  commodious  building  accommo- 
dating thirty  or  forty  patients,  a  Nurses  Home  and  corps 
of  young  women  in  training.  Mrs.  W.  Seymour  White  beame 
the  first  president  —  elected  because  of  her  interest  in  estab- 
lishing it,  and  in  recognition  of  the  strong  support  given  it  by 
her  husband  as  Mayor,  who  in  that  capacity  was  able  to  weild 
an  influence  that  helped  materially  towards  its  success. 


The  Mary  Washington  Monument  has  a  history  too  long 
to  be  embraced  in  this  volume  and  only  a  brief  sketch  of  it  will 
be  appropriate.  "The  Building  of  a  Monument"  was  written 
by  Miss  Susan  Riviere  Hetzel,  and  published  in  1903.  She 
was  at  the  time  Secretary  of  the  National  Mary  Washington 
Memorial  Association,  following  her  mother  Mrs.  Margaret 
Hetzel,  its  first  Secretary. 

The  idea  of  erecting  a  new  monument  to  Mary  Washing- 
ton seemed  to  spring  up  simultaneously  in  Fredericksburg  and 
in  Boston,  and  spread  like  wild-fire  over  the  country.  Miss 
Hetzel  claims  priority  for  her  mother,  while  the  actual  first 
published  movement  took  place  in  Fredericksburg.  Two  let- 
ters were  written  and  published  on  the  same  date  in  the  Wash- 
ington Post.  Both  letters  were  written  in  the  spring  just  at 
the  time  of  the  Johnstown  flood,  and  held  in  the  newspaper 
office,  probably  overlooked,  until  October.  On  October  13th 
the  movement  crystalized  into  a  large  meeting  in  Fredericks- 
burg. The  writers  of  the  two  letters  became  acquainted 
through  a  mutual  interest.  Mrs.  Goolrick's  letter  proposed  a 
National  Organization  with  a  President  and  one  Vice-Presi- 
dent for  each  State.  Mrs.  Hetzel's  letter  suggested  that  "every 
woman  as  far  as  able  give  one  dollar  to  the  proposed  monu- 
ment with  the  Washington  Post  as  Treasurer  for  the  fund, 
and  to  acknowledge  daily  the  donations  received."  On  the 
appearance  of  the  letters  in  the  Washington  Post  Mrs.  Hetzel 
wrote  to  Mrs.  Goolrick,  congratulating  her  on  the  plan  she 

129 


Dedication  of  Monument 

proposed,  stating  that  such  a  plan  was  then  practically  in 
operation,  and  had  been  worked  up  during  the  summer,  Mrs. 
Waite,  wife  of  Chief  Justice  Waite,  was  made  president,  but 
they  wished  no  publication  or  mention  made  of  it  until  they 
obtained  their  Charter.  On  November  8th,  1889,  the  Freder- 
icksburg Association  received  its  Charter.  The  National  Asso- 
ciation was  chartered  February  22nd,  1890.  On  the  10th  of 
May,  1894,  the  Mary  Washington  Monument  was  dedicated, 
with  great  form  and  ceremony  and  with  the  largest  crowd 
ever  gathered  in  Fredericksburg.  Visitors  flocked  from  all 
over  the  country.  The  streets  were  in  gala  attire.  American, 
and  Virginia  State  flags  fluttered  everywhere  with  the  buff, 
blue  and  gold  insignia  of  the  Ball  family,  which  floated  before 
the  homes  of  Mary  Ball's  decendants.  A  special  train  from 
Washington  arrived  at  ten  o'clock  bringing  the  President  of 
the  United  States,  Grover  Cleveland,  the  Chief  Justice,  mem- 
bers of  the  Cabinet  and  other  invited  guests  with  the  ladies  of 
the  National  Mary  Washington  Memorial  Association,  the 
Daughters  of  the  American  Revolution,  and  the  Marine  Band. 
Military  Companies  from  Richmond,  Alexandria  and  other 
cities  were  present,  and  with  the  various  orders  of  the  city  made 
an  imposing  spectacle.  The  Grand  Lodge  of  Masons  from  this 
and  other  places  closed  the  procession,  with  the  Grand  Master 
of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Virginia,  and  the  Grand  Secretary  of 
the  Grand  Lodge  of  the  District  of  Columbia  following  in  its 
wake.  On  the  immense  rostrum  near  the  Monument  were 
seated  all  the  officials,  and  Societies,  with  seats  reserved  for 
the  descendants  of  Mary  Ball  who  were  specially  invited  by 
the  National  Association.  They  had  been  summoned  from 
the  East  and  from  the  West,  one  invitation  going  to  Japan  to 
Paymaster  Mason  Ball,  U.  S.  N. 

The  ceremonies  opened  with  a  prayer  by  Rev.  James 
Power  Smith.  Mayor  Rowe  next  welcomed  on  the  part  of 
the  city  the  President,  Governor  and  other  distinguished  guests. 
Me  gave  a  brief  account  of  the  first  monument  and  laying  of 
the  corner  stone  by  President  Andrew  Jackson,  with  an  elo- 
quent tribute  to  the  Mary  Washington  Association  and  "the 

130 


Mary  Wash  incton   Momwiknt 

Standiiiii  at   the  Spot   that'  She  Selected   for   tier   {'.rare       / // 
M  ointment    Huill    l'\'   II  ''in, 'ii    to  if    ll'iinitin 


Only 


Lawrence  Washington's  Talk 

noble  women  in  various  sections,  some  of  whom  grace  this 
occasion  by  their  presence  today."  The  President  of  the 
United  States  was  welcomed  by  Governor  Charles  T.  O'Fer- 
rall  on  behalf  of  the  Commonwealth  of  Virginia.  An 
impressive  address  was  then  delivered  by  the  President.  The 
Monument  was  then  dedicated  by  the  Grand  Master  of  Masons 
of  Virginia  —  Mann  Page  and  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Virginia, 
assisted  by  Fredericksburg  Lodge  No.  4  where  Washington 
was  made  a  Mason,  and  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Alexandria,  of 
which  he  was  the  first  Master.  Mr.  Lawrence  Washington 
was  introduced  by  the  President  as  a  lineal  descendant  of 
Mary,  the  Mother  of  Washington.  He  gave  an  interesting 
sketch  of  her  life,  home,  parentage,  widowhood  and  the  char- 
acter of  her  children.  The  President  next  introduced  the 
orator  of  the  day,  Hon.  John  W.  Daniel.  He  is  said  to  have 
pronounced  on  this  occasion  the  ablest  oratorical  effort  of  his 
life. 

Governor  O'Ferrall  at  the  request  of  the  Fredericksburg- 
Mary  Washington  Monument  Association  read  a  set  of  en- 
grossed resolutions  which  were  presented  to  Mrs.  Waite  as 
President  of  the  National  Society.  This  concluded  the  cere- 
monies. President  Cleveland  after  holding  a  general  recep- 
tion on  the  monument  grounds  was  entertained  at  the  home  of 
Hon.  W.  Seymour  White,  editor  of  the  Free  Lance,  and 
afterwards  Mayor  of  the  city.  It  was  a  brilliant  gathering, 
Cabinet  Officers  and  their  wives,  the  Governor  of  Virginia  and 
Staff,  and  distinguished  citizens  of  the  town  and  elsewhere 
to  greet  them.  The  ladies  of  the  National  Board  were  enter- 
tained at  the  home  of  Mrs.  V.  M.  Fleming,  president  of  the 
local  association.  President  Cleveland  repaired  to  the  Mary 
Washington  House  where  he  requested  he  should  receive  all 
the  descendants  of  the  Balls  and  Washingtons.  "There  he 
had  the  satisfaction  of  grasping  the  hands  and  enjoying  the 
conversation  of  the  nearest  living  relatives  of  his  first  and 
greatest  predecessor,  in  the  home  of  his  honored  mother." 

A  banquet  was  given  by  the  citizens  in  the  Opera  House, 
and  a  large  Ball  that  night  in  the  same  place.  Thus  closed  a 
memorable  day  in  the  annals  of  Fredericksburg. 

131 


Story  of  Older  Monument 

The  land  on  which  the  monument  is  built,  on  the  same 
site  as  that  occupied  by  the  first  monument,  was  given  by  Mr. 
George  Shepherd,  a  prominent  and  wealthy  merchant,  to  the 
Fredericksburg  Mary  Washington  Monument  Association, 
and  was  transferred  at  the  dedication  of  the  monument  by  a 
conditional  deed  to  the  National  Association. 

The  first  monument  to  the  memory  of  Mary  Washington 
was  partly  erected  by  Silas  Burrows  of  New  York,  who  as 
rumor  has  it,  fell  in  love  with  one  of  the  Gregory  girls  —  great 
nieces  of  George  Washington.  It  was  of  handsome  design, 
but  never  finished,  and  the  marble  shaft  lay  prostrate  for  many 
years,  cracked  and  discolored,  while  the  base,  with  its  beautiful 
four  carved  columns  was  a  target  for  both  armies  during  the 
Civil  war. 

The  corner  stone  of  this  first  monument  was  laid  in  1833, 
with  much  pomp,  the  President  of  the  United  States — Gen. 
Andrew  Jackson — takingpart  with  Cabinet  Officers  and  escorts, 
The  people  of  Fredericksburg  previous  to  Mr.  Burrows'  offer, 
had  made  efforts  to  raise  money  for  a  memorial  to  Mary 
Washington,  blearing  of  this  he  wrote  to  the  Mayor,  offering 
to  give  and  erect  the  monument  himself.  The  monument  had 
reached  completion  with  the  exception  of  placing  the  shaft, 
when  Mr.  Burrows  went  abroad  and  never  reappeared,  the 
same  Madam  Rumor  attributing  it  to  the  disappointment  he 
experienced  at  the  failure  to  win  the  hand  of  Miss  Gregory, 
the  daughter  of  Mildred  Washington,  the  niece  of  the  im- 
nn  >rtal  George. 

The  present  monument  is  splendidly  cared  for  by  the 
National  Association  with  the  Secretary  of  the  Association,  a 
Fredericksburg  lady  in  charge  and  living  on  the  grounds  in  a 
beautiful  cottage  built  by  the  National  Mary  Washington 
Monument  Ass<  >ciati<  »n. 


i32 


At  the  Rising  Sun 

Where  Famous  Men  Met;  and  Mine  Host  Brewed  Punch  and  Sedition. 

Standing  back  a  few  feet  from  the  Main  Street  of  Fred- 
ericksburg, the  Rising  Sun  Tavern  looks  out  on  the  automo- 
biles and  trucks  that  hurry  by  over  the  concrete  streets.  Silk 
and  woolen  mills  and  "pants"  factories  spin  and  weave  and 
rumble,  while  the  old  tavern,  with  the  dignity  of  its  century 
and  a  half  calmly  flaunts  the  sign  of  the  rising  sun  with  its 
radii  of  red  light.  The  knocker  that  felt  the  hand  of  almost 
every  famous  American  of  early  days  still  hangs  kindly  out. 

Built  in  1750  or  1760,  the  Rising  Sun  Tavern  is  at  least 
160  years  old.  In  the  days  when  American  men  were  slowly 
being  forced  from  their  English  allegiance  it  stood  in  an  open 
space,  surrounded  by  green  trees.  The  road  on  which  it  was 
built  ran  out  from  Fredericksburg  toward  Falmouth  and  the 
"upper  county,"  and  the  tavern  was  outside  the  city  limits. 

If  one  could  stand  and  see  the  tavern  as  in  a  movie  "fade 
out,"  the  modem  houses  about  it  would  dim,  and,  fresh  in 
making  and  painting,  the  old  tavern  would  stand  alone  beside 
a  rutted  road  alongside  which  a  footpath  runs  through  the 
grass.  Oak  trees  line  the  road,  and  reach  down  to  the  river. 
On  the  porch,  or  passing  up  and  down  the  steps  are  gentlemen 
of  the  Northern  Neck,  the  Potomac  plantations,  and  the  Rap- 
pahannock Valley,  in  splendid  broadcloth,  laced  ruffles,  black 
silk  stockings,  with  buckles  at  the  knees  and  the  instep,  pow- 
dered hair  and  the  short  wigs  then  the  fashion,  and  ladies  in 
the  fashionable  red  cloaks  and  long,  full  dresses  with  the 
"Gypsy  bonnets"  tied  under  their  chins,  and  hair  "crimped" 
and  rolled  at  each  side. 

At  the  back  yard  of  the  tavern  in  the  old  garden  grew  a 
profusion  of  tulips,  pink  violets,  purple  iris,  hyacinths  and 
the  flowering  almond  and  passion  fruit,  with  here  and  there 

133 


When  Weedon  Was  the  Host 

rose  bushes.  Inside  in  the  front  room  flamed  the  log"  fire  and 
at  the  rear  of  this  was  the  dining-room,  where  for  men  and 
women  and  boys,  the  old  negro  slave  who  served  the  gentle 
folk  had  mint  juleps,  or  claret  that  had  thrice  crossed  the 
ocean,  or  brandy  and  soda. 

Virginia  in  the  days  between  1760  and  1776  reached  the 
"golden  age,"  and  it  was  during  these  times  that  George 
Weedon,  host  of  the  Rising  Sun,  made  that  hostelry  famous 
for  its  hospitality,  and  made  himself  famous  for  his  constant 
advocacy  of  American  liberty.  Of  Weedon,  who  was  later 
to  become  a  general  and  win  commendation  at  the  Battle  of 
Brandywine,  the  English  traveler,  Dr.  Smith,  wrote:  "I  put 
up  at  the  tavern  of  one  Weedon,  who  was  ever  active  and 
zealous  in  blowing  the  flames  of  sedition." 

Weedon,  one  of  the  pioneers  of  the  movement  for  free- 
dom, made  his  Tavern  the  gathering  place  for  all  the  gentle- 
men of  the  "neighborhood"  of  which  Dr.  Smith  says:  "The 
neighborhood  included  all  of  Westmoreland  County,  the 
Northern  Neck  and  all  other  counties  as  far  as  Mount 
Vernon." 

John  Davis,  a  Welshman  who  came  to  America  to  teach, 
has  left  us  a  sketch  of  the  tavern  of  that  day  and  of  the  people 
who  frequented  it,  and  a  part  of  what  Mr.  Davis  wrote  is  well 
worth  quoting:  "On  the  porch  of  the  tavern,"  he  says,  "I 
found  a  party  of  gentlemen  of  the  neighboring  plantations 
sitting  over  a  bowl  of  toddy  and  smoking  cigars.  On  ascend- 
ing the  steps  to  the  piazza,  every  countenance  seemed  to  say, 
'This  man  has  a  double  claim  to  our  attention,  for  he  is  a 
stranger  in  the  place.'  In  a  moment  room  was  made  for  me 
to  sit  down,  and  a  new  bowl  of  punch  called  for,  and  every 
one  addressed  me  with  a  smile  of  conciliation.  The  higher 
Virginians  seem  to  venerate  themselves.  1  am  persuaded 
that  not  one  of  that  company  would  have  felt  embarrassed 
at  being  admitted  to  the  presence  and  conversation  of  the 
greatest  monarch  on  earth." 

Attracted  by  its  hospitality  and  by  the  constant  meeting 
before  the  wcxxl-fire  of  men  whose  influence  was  great,  gentle- 

*34 


Where  Famous  Men  Often  Met 

men  from  all  Virginia  came  to  the  Rising  Sun.  George  Mason, 
who  Gillard  Hunt  of  the  Library  of  Congress  says  was  "more 
than  any  other  man  entitled  to  be  called  the  Father  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,"  was  frequently  there.  The 
young  man  from  Monticello,  Thomas  Jefferson,  who  was 
Mason's  pupil  in  politics,  spent  much  time  at  Gunston  and  was 
often  at  the  tavern. 

George  Washington,  whose  home  was  in  Fredericksburg, 
knew  the  tavern  well,  and  Hugh  Mercer,  a  young  physician, 
and  brother-in-law  of  mine  host  Weedon  (they  having  mar- 
ried the  two  Misses  Gordon),  spent  a  great  deal  of  time  there. 
Other  guests  who  heard  the  news  and  who  read  of  events 
when  the  weekly  stage  brought  the  belated  mail  from  Wil- 
liamsburg, to  the  Tavern  Postoffice,  where  "Light  Horse" 
Harry  Lee  and  Charles  Lee,  from  their  near-by  home  at 
Wakefield,  Charles  Carter,  son  of  the  mighty  "King"  Carter, 
who  came  from  "Cleve" ;  John  Marshall,  Dr.  Mortimer,  the 
Tayloes,  of  "Mt.  Airy";  John  Minor,  (afterwards  general,)  of 
Hazel  Hill;  young  James  Monroe,  practicing  as  an  attorney 
in  Fredericksburg  and  acting  as  a  member  of  the  town  council 
and  vestryman  of  St.  George's  Church;  Samuel,  Charles  and 
John  Augustine  Washington,  brothers  of  George,  as  well  as 
Fielding  Lewis,  who  married  George's  sister  Betty,  and  was 
afterwards  a  general  in  the  revolutionary  army.  Many  of  the 
frequenters'  of  the  tavern  held  high  commissions  during  the 
war. 

It  is  a  matter  of  undoubted  record  that  these,  and  half 
a  hundred  other  young  men,  whose  names  were  to  become 
synonymous  with  freedom,  discussed  at  the  Rising  Sun 
Tavern  the  topics  of  the  day,  chief  among  which  was  the 
rights  of  the  colonist.  The  fiery  Irishman,  George  Weedon, 
arranged  and  organized  conferences  and  wrote  numerous 
letters,  and  long  before  men  had  ceased  to  respect  the  English 
king,  he  was  bold  enough  to  propose  for  the  first  time  the 
toast,  "May  the  Rose  grow  and  the  Thistle  flourish,  and  may 
the  Harp  be  attuned  to  the  cause  of  American  liberty,"  thus 
expressing  his  desire  that  his  native  land,  and  Scotland,  should 

135 


First  "Rebellions'  Troops 

aid  America.  And  he  was  not  disappointed,  for  afterwards 
he  would  say  that  he  was  "ever  proud  that  besides  himself, 
America  had  for  generals  such  Irishmen  as  'Mad  Anthony' 
Wayne,  Sullivan,  Moylan  and  Irvine." 

In  these  talks  at  the  Rising  Sun.  where  sometimes  the 
great  men  of  the  time  met  night  after  night,  those  principles 
that  went  in  the  Bill  of  Rights  of  Virginia  —  were  fully  dis- 
cussed before  freedom  from  England  was  demanded ;  and  here, 
where  gathered  lawyers  and  planters  and  men  of  profession, 
many  of  them  members  of  the  House  of  Burgesses,  there  must 
have  been  conceived  a  great  many  principles  that  afterwards 
went  to  make  the  Constitution.  This  was  the  true  "cradle"  of 
American  liberty. 

John  Paul  Jones  when  only  thirteen  years  old,  heard  the 
first  discussion  of  such  things,  probably,  when  he  called  at  the 
tavern  post-office  for  mail  for  his  brother,  William  Paul,  who 
kept  a  tailor  shop  and  grocery. 

When  Lord  Dunmore  seized  the  powder  at  Williamsburg 
in  1775,  the  first  troops  organized  in  Virginia  to  fight  against 
the  authority  of  the  king,  started  from  Fredericksburg.  It 
seems  certain  that  the  plans  were  made  at  the  Rising  Sun 
Tavern,  and  George  Weedon  was  the  leading  spirit.  Hugh 
Mercer  was  elected  colonel,  Mordecai  Buckner,  lieutenant- 
colonel,  and  Robert  Johnson,  major. 

But  the  apex  of  the  tavern's  glory  was  reached  when 
the  great  peace  ball  was  held  officially  to  celebrate  the  end  of 
the  war,  and  Washington  led  the  minuet  in  the  Fredericksburg 
town  hall.  Of  those  who  came,  tradition  says,  none  failed  to 
visit  General  Weedon 's  tavern,  though  the  genial  Irishman 
was  now  about  to  leave  it  and  move  into  the  home  left  without 
a  head  when  General  Mercer  fell. 

Among  those  who  came  to  Fredericksburg  and  were  at 
some  time  guests  at  the  famous  old  inn,  besides  those  named 
were  Brigadier  General  Stephen  Moylan,  another  Irishman 
who  served  as  Washington's  aide,  as  commissary  general  and 
as    commander    of    troops    at    Yorktown ;    Brigadier-General 

136 


Beautiful  Colonial  Belles 

Irvine,  Irish  too,  and  here  at  Weedon's  insistence;  Count 
Beaumarchais,  author  of  the  "Barber  of  Seville"  and  general 
in  the  American  army;  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette,  the  Vis- 
counts d'Nouvalles,  Count  d'Estang,  Baron  Viominel.  and 
many  others. 

But  who  were  the  ladies  then?  History  does  not  say, 
but  the  dancing  master,  Mr.  Christian,  who  taught  the  ''gentle 
young  ladies"  through  the  "neighborhood,"  and  has  left 
sketches  of  their  personal  manner  and  dress,  has  described 
for  us  a  host  of  them,  many  of  them  misses  of  15  and  16, 
who  now  would  be  called  girls  but  were  quite  young  ladies 
then. 

Miss  Lucy  Lightfoot  Lee  was  "tall  and  stately"  (at  16), 
Mr.  Christian  says,  "wearing  a  bright  chintz  gown  with  a 
blue  stamp,  elegantly  made,  a  blue  silk  quilt,  and  stays,  now  said 
to  be  the  fashion  in  London  but  to  my  mind  a  great  nuisance." 
While  Miss  Hale  danced  in  "a  white  Holland  gown,  quilt 
very  fine,  a  lawn  apron,  her  hair  crimped  up  in  two  rolls  at 
each  side  and  a  tuft  of  ribbon  for  a  cap." 

It  is  easy  to  surmise  that  the  charming  Gregory  girls, 
now  married,  were  there,  and  that  little  Maria  Mortimer,  who 
on  the  night  following  the  Peace  Ball,  at  15  years  of  age,  was 
hostess  for  all  the  great  gentlemen,  was  also  a  guest,  as  well 
as  Miss  Betsy  Lee,  Martha  Custis,  and  Posey  Custis,  Molly 
Posey,  Anne  Mason,  Alice  Lee,  and  Mary  Ambler  (later  to 
become  the  wife  of  Chief  Justice  Marshall),  Sally  Patton, 
"lately  come  from  England  to  teach,"  the  two  Turberville 
girls,  Priscilla  Carter,  Jenny  Washington  and  the  Lewis  girls, 
the  Taylor  girls,  and  the  Fitzhughs,  of  Boscobel  and  Chatham. 

The  old  tavern  is  well-preserved  and  is  taken  care  of  by 
the  Association  for  the  Preservation  of  Virginia  Antiquities. 
Not  much  change  has  been  made  in  it  since  the  days  of  its 
glory,  when  at  its  hospitable  hearth  young  James  Monroe 
argued  for  the  emancipation  of  slaves,  George  Mason  spoke 
his  views  on  the  rights  of  man,  Weedon  talked  forever  "sedi- 
tion" with  Mercer,  who  hated  England  since  he  had  felt  defeat 

*37 


Names  of  Great  Virginians 

at  the  disaster  of  Colloden  and  crept  from  Scotland  a  hunted 
man,  Jefferson  discussed  his  broad  principles,  and  the  Ran- 
dolphs, Blands,  Byrds,  Harrisons,  Moncures,  Taliaferros, 
Fitzhughs,  Lewises  of  Marmion,  Carters  of  Cleve,  Raleigh 
Travers  (of  Sir  Walter's  family)  of  Stafford,  Peter  Daniel  of 
"Crows  Nest,"  Thomas  Fitzhugh,  Selden  of  Salvington,  Brent 
of  Bellevue,  Ludwell  Lee  of  "Berry  Hill."  Richard  Henry  Lee 
of  "Wakefield,"  and  other  famous  men  gathered,  in  those 
crowded  days  before  the  Revolution. 


138 


Lafayette  Comes  Back 

After  Forty  Years  of  Failure,  He  Hears  the  Echo  of  His   Youthful  Triumph. 

Forty  years  after  his  return  to  France  at  the  end  of  the 
American  Revolution,  General  Lafayette  came  back  to  visit 
the  nation  he  had  helped  to  create.  Cities  of  the  United  States 
heaped  honor  and  hospitality  upon  him.  The  people  greeted 
him  in  villages  and  taverns  as  he  traveled,  and  it  is  not 
strange  that  he  returned  to  France  "astonished"  at  the  vigor 
of  the  young  republic. 

He  himself  had  seen  France  taste  freedom,  turn  to  the 
Terror,  accept  Bonaparte's  dictatorship  and  fight  the  world  — 
and  he  had  taken  his  part  in  it  all,  even  to  five  years  spent  in 
a  prison  cell.  Now  he  beheld  on  the  throne  again  the  scions 
of  the  same  monarch  who  had  tried  in  vain  to  prevent  his  aid- 
ing America  in  her  fight  for  freedom,  and,  his  title  and  estates 
gone,  he  must  have  felt  France's  failure  to  realize  such  ideals 
of  government  as  he  and  Washington  knew,  as  keenly  as  he 
appreciated  the  "astonishing"  march  of  democracy  on  this 
continent. 

Entertained  first  in  the  North,  Lafayette  hurried  South 
to  see  Jefferson  at  Monticello  for  a  day.  From  the  Charlottes- 
ville estate  he  traveled  to  Orange  Courthouse,  and  thence,  over 
the  road  his  army  had  cut  through  "The  Wilderness"  and 
which  even  to  this  day  is  known  as  "The  Marquis  Road,"  he 
came  to  Wilderness  Tavern,  where  he  was  met  by  an  escort 
from  Fredericksburg. 

Fredericksburg  was  awaiting  him,  and  Lafayette  was 
glad  of  the  opportunity  to  spend  the  greater  part  of  a  week 
in  the  "home  town"  of  George  Washington,  to  visit  Wash- 
ington's relatives,  and  to  meet  those  of  the  Revolutionary 
general  still  living  in  the  place.  He  had  been  to  Fredericks- 
burg before  in  1774,  an  honored  guest  at  "The  Peace  Ball." 
He  had  said  that  he  felt  more  at  home  in  Fredericksburg  than 
anywhere  in  America. 

139 


Peculiar  I  tons  of  Expense 

Genera]  Washington,  Mrs.  Washington,  General  Mercer, 
General  Weedon  —  a  dozen  of  his  closer  friends  whom  he  had 
left  behind  forty  years  ago  —  were  dead,  but  among  the  Fred- 
ericksburg people  there  were  still  numbers  who  knew  him, 
some  who  had  entertained  him,  and  many  who  had  fought 
with  him. 

That  Fredericksburg  did  her  best  and  that  good  cheer 
was  not  lacking  when  the  general  arrived,  is  recorded  in  the 
old  courthouse  of  that  city  in  the  official  bill  of  expenses  for 
the  entertainment  of  the  distinguished  guest.  On  these  yellow 
papers  written  in  the  careful  hand  of  that  day.  are  bills  for 
ribbons  and  laces  and  cocked  hats,  sperm  candles  and  cakes, 
oranges  (at  $1.20  a  dozen),  cockades,  cloaks  and  ''everything" 
that  might  assist  in  making  the  November  days  of  the  Mar- 
quis' stay  glide  right  merrily. 

Before  the  general  arrived  there  was  preliminary  work, 
and  this  is  recorded  in  a  number  of  bills,  among  them  that 
of  Sally  Stokes  who  had  one  for  "cleaning  and  schowering 
the  town  hall,  and  whitening  the  steps  and  cleaning  the  walls, 
etc.  —  I  charge  for  myself  and  2  other  women  —  $2.25." 
Her  charge  was  probably  a  little  high  as  the  work  was  for 
the  city.  "Benj.  Day"  got  the  draying  contract  and  profiteered 
in  the  following  rate  : 

"Dr.  me  for  myself  and  team  and  dray  for  4  days  hauling 
for  the  Entertainment  Commit.  $6.00."  Also  among  the  bills 
for  labor  is  one: 

"To  John  Scott,  Dr.  to  hire  oi  my  man  Billy,  the  painter, 
for  6  days  to  paint  the  market  house,  $4.50,"  while  "Mary 
Lucas,"  a  "freewoman,"  got  $1 .25  for  "sawing  2  1-2  cords 
of  wood." 

General  Lafayette  was  met  at  Orange  by  a  committee 
and  under  its  escort  he  journeyed  south,  (along  that  forest 
road  which  his  armv  cut  when  with  "Mad  Anthony  Wayne" 
he  followed  Tarleton  into  the  unsettled  parts  of  Virginia  and 
the  Carnhnas.)  to  the  Wilderness  and  to  Fredericksburg.  It 
is  jx^ssible  that  some  message  had  to  be  sent  from  or  to  his 

140 


George  Cary's  Great  Thirst 

escort,  in  fact  it  is  evident,  for  George  Cary  has  left  record 
of  it,  and  in  presenting  his  bill  he  has  left  as  well  his  individu- 
ality and  his  photograph  behind  him.  If  one  remembers  that 
brandy  was  $1.00  a  gallon,  he  needs  little  more  of  George 
Cary's  history  than  this. 

"To  George  Cary  for  services  rendered  as  messenger,  to 
the  Wilderness,  including  self  and  horse,  $7.00. 

"and  drink,  $175" 

"Deduct  50c.  advanced  him  by  the  Mayor,  $8.25." 

Near  Fredericksburg,  and  almost  at  the  spot  where  dur- 
ing the  Revolution  the  camp  of  Hessian  prisoners  was  kept, 
General  Lafayette  was  met  by  a  military  escort  commanded 
by  Colonel  John  Stannard.  When  the  cavalcade  reached  the 
city  it  passed  through  rows  of  grown-ups  and  children  and 
(surely  previously  rehearsed  for  many  days!),  the  latter  sang 
in  French,  "The  Marseillaise,"  and,  stepping  from  his  coach, 
Lafayette  marched  between  the  rows  of  children,  singing  the 
anthem  of  the  French  revolution. 

Only  one  break  was  made  during  the  stay  of  the  Marquis 
in  Fredericksburg,  if  deductions  from  these  old  accounts  are 
correct.  The  town  cannon  must  have  "busted."  And  why 
it  did,  and  the  legitimate  enthusiasm  which  led  to  such  a 
contretemps,  due  probably  to  the  exuberance  of  one  who  had 
followed  the  general  in  the  great  war  for  liberation  forty  years 
before,  is  gathered  from  these  bills : 

"To  John  Phillips,  for  tending  to  the  gun,  $2.  Old  junk, 
37c.  Old  junk,  27c.  Old  junk,  23c.  4  kegs  of  powder,  $24., 
two  quarts  whisky,  50c." 

"To  John  Phillips,  fireing  the  cannon,  $4." 

"To  Thomas  Wright,  for  21  panes  glass  broken  by  the 
cannon  last  Saturday  night  and  on  the  19th  of  November,  10c. 
a  pane  and  8x10  each  —  $2.10." 

When  General  Lafayette  left  Fredericksburg  he  went  by 
stage  to  Potomac  Creek,  by  boat  to  Washington,  by  stage  to 
Baltimore,  and  thence  he  sailed  back  to  France.  With  him 
went  Messrs.  Mercer  and  Lewis,  both  sons  of  men  who  had 
been  Generals  in  the  war  for  Liberty. 

141 


Old  Court  Records 

Staid  Documents,  Writ  by  Hands   That  Are  Still,  Are  History  For   Us. 

For  simple  beauty  of  line  there  is  probably  no  Court 
House  in  Virginia  that  equals  that  at  Fredericksburg.  While 
to  the  casual  eye  its  grace  is  obvious,  to  artists'  and  architects' 
it  makes  the  stronger  appeal,  and  it  is  from  those  familiar 
with  the  lines  of  new  and  old  world  buildings  that  the  Court 
House  receive  highest  praise.  Inside,  in  a  modern  vault, 
are  many  interesting  records  of  the  past.  The  Court 
House  was  completed  in  1852,  at  a  cost  of  about  $14,000, 
William  M.  Boggeth  of  Baltimore  being  the  contractor,  and 
J.  B.  Benwick,  Jr.,  of  Baltimore,  the  architect,  and  its  com- 
pletion marked  the  end  of  a  thirty  years  factional  fight  in  the 
City,  which  was  divided  over  the  issue  of  building  or  not 
building  a  court  house.  The  decision  to  build  was  made  by 
the  Council  in  spite  of  a  petition  against  such  action,  signed 
by  one  hundred  and  seventy-two  voters. 

The  second  Court  House,  a  small  brick  building,  stood 
back  from  the  street,  on  a  part  of  the  ground  the  present  struc- 
ture occupies,  and  had  taken  the  place  of  the  first  plank  Court 
House.  But,  as  early  as  1820,  the  second  structure  was  com- 
plained of  by  the  Court,  which  went  so  far  as  to  "order"  the 
Council  to  provide  funds  for  a  new  structure,  to  which  the 
Council  paid  no  attention.  On  June  14,  1849,  the  Court,  com- 
posed of  Mayor  Semple  and  Justices  William  H.  White  and 
Peter  Goolrick,  issued  an  order  and  appointed  a  committee, 
as  follows:  "Thomas  B.  Barton,  John  L.  Marye,  Robert  B. 
Semple,  Wm.  C.  Beale  and  John  J.  Chew,  to  examine  and 
report  to  this  Court  some  plan  for  the  enlargement  and  repairs 
or  rebuilding  of  the  Court  House  of  this  Corjxtration." 

But  in  spite  of  some  excitement  following  this  unusual 
step  of  the  Court,  the  Council  continued  its  wav  undisturbed. 

142 


Building  a  New  Courthouse 

The  Court,  however,  called  before  it  "the  Justices  for  this 
Corporation"  and  at  the  next  session  eight  Justices  —  R.  B. 
Semple,  Robert  Dickey,  Beverly  R.  Welford,  William  C. 
Beale,  William  H.  White,  Peter  Goolrick,  William  Warren 
and  William  Slaughter  answered  the  summons.  The  report 
of  the  committee  appointed  at  the  previous  session  of  the  Court 
was  made  and  the  Court  finally  took  this  action : 

"That,  in  obedience  to  the  act  of  the  General  Assembly, 
which  requires  that  Courts  for  the  Corporations'  within  this 
Commonwealth  should  cause  to  be  erected  one  good,  con- 
venient court  house,  and  it  being  necessary  to  build  a  court 
house  for  this  corporation,"  etc.,  the  Court  "appoints  a  com- 
mission, consisting  of  Mayor  Semple,  Beverly  R.  Welford, 
William  H.  White,  Thomas  B.  Barton  and  John  L.  Marye  to 
contract  for  a  court  house." 

But,  despite  this,  and  because  of  the  divided  sentiment  of 
the  people  and  the  inaction  of  the  Council,  the  Court  did  not 
build  a  court  house,  and  at  a  later  meeting  voted  four  to  four 
on  a  motion  to  rescind  their  previous  order.  After  various 
moves  and  counter  moves,  the  issue  was  carried  into  a  regular 
election  held  in  March,  1851,  and  a  Council  in  favor  of  a  new 
Court  House  was  chosen.  The  erection  of  the  present  struc- 
ture in  1852  ended  a  thirty  years  disagreement,  which  built  up 
bitter  factions  in  the  town  and  left  animosities,  which  did  not 
subside  until  the  Civil  War  came  on.  For  many  years,  until 
the  new  Fire  House  was  built,  the  old  hand-drawn  fire  appa- 
ratus was  housed  in  the  south  wing  of  the  building. 

The  bell  which  is  now  in  the  tower  of  the  Court  House, 
formerly  hung  in  the  second  court  house,  and  sounded  the  call 
to  public  meetings,  as  it  does  today,  and  the  alarms  of  fire 
and  war.  It  was  presented  to  the  town  by  Silas  Wood  in 
1828,  and  has  his  name  and  that  date  on  it,  as  well  as  the 
name  of  the  maker,  "Revere,  Boston." 

From  the  earliest  times,  debtors  who  could  not  pay  their 
bills  were  imprisoned  in  the  jail  in  Court  House  square  or. 
more  properly,  slept  in  the  jail  and  were  imprisoned  in  the 

143 


How  Debtors  Were  Treated 

square ;  for  they  were  allowed  the  freedom  of  the  whole  square 
and  the  adjacent  streets,  but  were  not  allowed  to  enter  any 
store  or  building  on  the  opposite  sides  of  the  streets.  Many 
men  of  prominence,  it  is  said,  spent  short  periods  in  this 
"Debtors'  Prison,"  awaiting  the  time  when  their  release  could 
be  secured  under  the  "Poor  Debtors'  Law,"  which  gave  them 
freedom  when  by  a  schedule  of  their  property  they  proved 
they  had  no  means  to  meet  their  obligations.  In  1840,  the 
Court  extended  the  bounds  of  the  "Debtors'  Prison"  to  include 
four  blocks  in  the  center  of  the  city,  and  the  "footways  ad- 
joining them" ;  but  to  go  beyond  these  bounds  was  contempt 
of  Court. 

No  existing  records  establish  what  Courts  held  session 
in  Fredericksburg  prior  to  the  Revolution,  and  it  is  probable 
that  successors  of  Mayor  Lawrence  Smith  were  empowered 
as  Governors  and  Judges  until  1727,  after  which  time  the 
Trustees  of  the  town  may  have  chosen  magistrates,  or  the 
colonial  Governors  may  have  done  this. 

It  is  established  that  the  first  Court  in  Fredericksburg 
was  created  by  the  General  Assembly  in  1781,  when  Freder- 
icksburg was  incorporated  and  given  a  Common  Council  and 
a  Hustings  Court.  The  first  session  of  this  Hustings  Court 
was  held  April  15,  1782,  with  the  following  Justices  present: 
Charles  Mortimer,  William  McWilliams,  James  Someryille, 
Charles  Dick,  Samuel  Ruddy,  and  John  Julien,  "the  same 
being  Mayor,  Recorder  and  Aldermen  of  the  town."  This 
continued  the  only  Court  until  1788,  when  nineteen  District 
Courts  were  established  in  the  State  by  the  General  Assembly, 
and  one  of  tlvem  was  located  at  Fredericksburg.  These  court> 
were  presided  over  by  two  of  the  ten  Judges  of  the  General 
Court  at  Richmond.  Among  the  many  men  of  prominence 
who  appeared  before  this  District  Court  were  James  Monroe, 
Edmund  Randolph,  and  Francis  Brooke.  This  District  Court 
was  abolished  in  1809  and  a  Circuit  Court  took  its  place. 
This  new  court  was  now  presided  over  by  one  of  the  Judges 
of  the  General  Court  at  Richmond.  With  some  changes  these 
courts  continue  to  the  present,  but  are  presided  over  by  spe- 

144 


History  of  the  Courts 

cially  chosen  Circuit  Judges.     But  the  Circuit  Court  is  not 
held  at  Fredericksburg. 

The  Hustings  Court,  meanwhile,  was  the  local  court  for 
Fredericksburg  until  1870,  when  it  became  the  "Corporation 
Court"  over  which,  instead  of  three  Justices  of  the  Peace,  the 
Assembly  now  provided  there  be  a  Judge  "Kvho  shall  be  learned 
in  law."  Judge  John  M.  Herndon  was  the  first  Judge  of  this 
Court,  in  1870,  and  was  succeeded  by  Judge  John  T.  Goolrick, 
1877,  Judge  Montgomery  Slaughter  followed  him,  Judge  A. 
Wellington  Wallace  presided  for  some  years,  and  Judge 
Embry  served  until  Judge  John  T.  Goolrick  was  again  chosen 
Judge  and  has  continued  on  the  bench  for  the  last  16  years. 

A  more  remarkable  record  is  that  of  the  men  of  the  Chew 
family,  who  for  ninety-nine  years  and  eleven  days'  were  the 
Clerks  of  this  Court,  succeeding  each  other  by  appointment 
and  election  in  direct  lineal  line.  Henry  Armistead,  first  Clerk 
of  the  Court,  died  August  1,  1787,  and  on  August  6,  1787, 
John  Chew,  Jr.,  was  appointed  to  the  vacancy.  In  1806  his 
son,  Robert  S.  Chew,  succeeded;  In  1826  the  latter's  son 
John  J.  Chew  succeeded;  In  1867,  the  latter's  son,  Robert  S. 
Chew  succeeded  and  held  office  until  his  death  in  1886.  Mr. 
J.  Willard  Adams  is'  now  Clerk  of  the  Corporation  Court. 

There  are  many  interesting  documents  in  the  vaults  of  the 
Court  House,  many  of  them  mere  scraps,  as  that  which  tells 
of  an  inquest  in  181 3  over  the  "Body  of  a  sailor  from  the 
Frigate  'Constitution,'  "  who  was  drowned  here  in  the  river, 
and  which  indicates  that  the  famed  old  boat  was  once  at 
Fredericksburg  Wharf. 

Among  the  oldest  and  most  interesting  documents  in  the 
archives  of  the  Court  House,  is  a  "List  of  Males  Capable  of 
Militia  Duty —  1785,"  and  of  the  two  hundred  and  sixty-five 
then  listed,  (which  would  indicate  a  population  of  about  1,300 
in  the  city  at  that  time).  There  are  few  names  now  known 
in  Fredericksburg,  nevertheless,  there  are  some,  and  of  these 
familiar  names  the  following  are  examples : 

145 


Mary  Washington's  Will 

"Dr.  Mortimer,  Dr.  Brooke,  Dr.  French,  Dr.  Hall,  Dr. 
Gillis,  Dr.  Hand"  and  "Bradford,  Taylor,  Yates,  Walker, 
Maury,  Minor,  Herndon,  White,  Brent,  Johnson,  Wheeler, 
Gray,  Jenkins,  Allen,  Crutchfield,  Ferneyhough,  Brown,  Chew, 
Weedon,  Colbert,  Washington,  Brooks,  Ingram,  Middleton, 
Spooner,  Payne,  Gordon,  Young,  Thompson.  Berry,  Slaughter, 
Lewis,  Clarke,"  and  many  others  whose  descendants  are  well 
known  in  this  city  and  vicinity. 

The  will  of  Mary  Washington,  written  by  James  Mercer, 
an  attorney  who  was  also  Chief  Justice  of  the  General  Court, 
(the  highest  court  of  Virginia)  and  signed  by  Mary  Wash- 
ington, is  preserved  in  the  Court  House  and  has  been  seen  by 
hundred  of  callers.  The  will  was  made  May  20,  1788,  and 
was  filed  after  the  death  of  Mrs.  Washington. 

"In  the  name  of  God,  Amen.  I,  Mary  Washington,  of 
Fredericksburg,  in  the  County  of  Spottsylvania,  being  in  good 
health,  but  calling  to  mind  the  uncertainty  of  this  life  and 
willing  to  dispose  of  what  remains  of  my  earthly  estate,  do 
make  and  publish  this,  my  last  will,  recommending  my  soul 
into  the  hands  of  my  Creator,  hoping  for  a  remission  of  all 
my  sins  through  the  merits  and  mediation  of  Jesus  Christ, 
the  Saviour  of  Mankind.  I  dispose  of  all  my  worldly  estate 
as  follows : 

Imprimis:  I  give  to  my  son,  General  George  Washington, 
all  my  lands  on  Accokeek  Run,  in  the  County  of  Stafford,  and 
also  my  negro  boy,  George,  to  him  and  his  Heirs  forever; 
also  my  best  bed,  bedstead  and  Virginia  cloth  curtains,  (the 
same  that  stands  in  my  best  room),  my  quilted  Blue  and  White 
quilt  and  my  best  dressing  glass. 

Item:  1  give  and  devise  to  my  son,  Charles  Washington, 
my  negro  man  Tom.  to  him  and  his  assigns  forever. 

Item :  I  give  and  devise  to  my  daughter,  Betty  Lewis, 
my  phaeton  and  my  bay  horse. 

Item :  I  give  and  devise  to  my  daughter-in-law,  Hannah 
Washington,  my  purple  cloth  cloak  lined  with  shay. 

146 


Mary  Washington's  Will 

Item :  I  give  and  bequeath  to  my  grandson,  Corbin  Wash- 
ington, my  negro  wench,  Old  Bet,  my  riding  chair  and  two 
black  horses',  to  him  and  his  assigns  forever. 

Item:  I  give  and  bequeath  to  my  grandson,  Fielding 
Lewis,  my  negro  man,  Frederick,  to  him  and  his  assigns  for- 
ever; also,  eight  silver  table  spoons,  half  of  my  crockery  ware, 
and  the  blue  and  white  Tea  China,  with  book  case,  oval  table, 
one  bedstead,  two  table  cloths,  six  red  leather  chairs,  half  my 
pewter,  and  one-half  my  iron  kitchen  furniture. 

Item:  I  give  and  bequeath  to  my  granddaughter,  Betty 
Carter,  my  negro  woman,  Little  Bet,  and  her  future  increase, 
to  her  and  her  assigns  forever;  also  my  largest  looking  glass, 
my  walnut  writing  desk  with  drawers,  a  square  dining  table, 
one  bed,  bedstead,  bolster,  one  pillow,  one  blanket  and  pair  of 
sheets,  white  Virginia  cloth  counterpane,  and  purple  curtains, 
my  red  and  white  china,  teaspoons  and  other  half  of  my 
pewter,  crockery  ware,  and  the  remainder  of  my  iron  kitchen 
furniture. 

Item :  I  give  to  my  grandson,  George  Washington,  my 
next  best  dressing  glass,  one  bed,  bedstead,  bolster,  one  pillow, 
one  pair  of  sheets,  one  blanket  and  counterpane. 

Item :  I  devise  all  my  wearing  apparel  to  be  equally 
divided  between  my  granddaughters,  Betty  Carter,  Fanny  Ball 
and  Milly  Washington ;  but  should  my  daughter,  Betty  Lewis, 
fancy  any  one,  two  or  three  articles,  she  is  to  have  them  before 
a  division  thereof. 

Lastly :  I  nominate  and  appoint  my  said  son,  General 
George  Washington,  executor  of  this,  my  Will,  and  as  I  owe 
few  or  no  debts,  I  desire  my  Executor  to  give  no  security  nor 
to  appraise  my  estate,  but  desire  the  same  may  be  allotted  to 
my  devisees  with  as  little  trouble  and  delay  as  may  be,  desiring 
their  acceptance  thereof  as  all  the  token  I  now  have  to  give 
them  of  my  love  for  them. 

In  Witness  Whereof,  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand  and 
seal  this  20th  day  of  May,  1788. 

Mary  Washington. 
Witness :  John  Ferneyhough. 

147 


Burial  in  Streets  Stopped 

Signed,  sealed  and  published  in  our  presence,  and  signed 
by  us  in  the  presence  of  the  said  Mary  Washington,  and  at 
her  desire. 

J.  Mercer 
Joseph  Walker." 

Among  the  orders  of  the  Court,  found  on  the  Order 
Books,  are  some  which  are  of  interest  as  bearing  on  old  cus- 
toms of  the  town.  One  of  the  first  of  these  was  entered  March 
i,  1784,  when  the  Court  "proceeded  to  settle  the  allowances 
to  the  officers  of  the  Corporation"  as  follows:  "Mr.  John 
Minor,  Jr.,  Attorney  for  the  Commonwealth,  two  thousand 
pounds  tobacco;  Mr.  Henry  Armistead,  Clerk,  twelve  hundred 
pounds  tobacco;  John  Legg,  Sergeant,  twelve  hundred  pounds 
tobacco;  Henry  Armistead,  for  attending  all  Courts  of  inquiry, 
four  hundred  pounds;  sergeant  for  same,  five  hundred  and 
seventy  pounds;  Wm.  Jenkins,  goaler,  three  hundred  and 
sixty-four  pounds." 

February  7.  1785,  "Robert  Brooke"  (afterwards  Gov- 
ernor of  Virginia  in  1794-96,  and  still  later  Attorney  General) 
and  Bushrod  Washington,  (Uncle  of  George  Washington  and 
later  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court )  were  admitted  to 
practice  law. 

April  25,  1801,  the  first  "watchman"  (policeman)  was 
appointed  for  the  t<>wn. 

In  a  peculiar  report,  made  March  2j,  1802,  the  Grand 
Jury  took  steps  to  put  a  stop  to  "a  nuisance,  the  numerous 
obstructions  1:1  the  street>,  particularly  in  St.  George  Street 
lot;  burying  the  dead  in  George  and  Princes  Anne  Streets; 
also  the  irregular  burying  in  the  ground  west  of  and  adjoining 
Prince  Edward."  These  graves,  the  report  shows,  were  on 
George,  Princess  Anne,  and  in  Hanover  Street,  west  of 
Princes  Anne,  and  on  George  Street  between  Main  and  the 
river. 

After  twenty-two  years,  the  Court  issued  its  first  author- 
ization for  a  Minister  of  the  Gospel   (none  but  the  Church  of 

148 


Court  Set  Liquor  Price 

England  ceremony  was  before  recognized)  to  perform  the 
marriage  ceremony,  December  24,  1804,  to  "Benj.  Essex," 
Methodist.  Others  followed  in  this  order :  Samuel  Wilson, 
Presbyterian,  September  22,  1806;  William  James,  Baptist, 
June  13,   181 1. 

The  undisputed  fact  that  John  Forsythe,  who  was  in  his 
generation  one  of  America's  most  famous  men,  and  a  sketch 
of  whose  life  is  given  elsewhere,  was  born  in  Fredericksburg, 
is  contained  in  this  entry,  dated  January  12,  1832. 

"The  Court  orders  it  to  be  certified  that  it  was  proved  to 
their  satisfaction,  by  the  evidence  of  Francis  S.  Scott,  a  wit- 
ness sworn  in  Court,  that  Major  Robert  Forsythe  of  the 
Revolutionary  army,  had  two  children,  one  of  whom,  Robert, 
died  under  age  and  unmarried,  and  the  other,  John,  is  now 
alive,  being  a  Senator  in  Congress  from  Georgia," 

Among  the  Court's  first  acts  after  establishment,  the 
Hustings  Court,  on  May  20,  1782,  thus  fixed  the  prices  of  cer- 
tain commodities  in  the  "Taverns" :  "Good  West  India  Rum, 
one  pound  per  gallon ;  bread,  ten  shillings ;  whiskey,  six ;  strong 
beer,  four;  good  West  India  rum  toddy,  ten  shillings;  brandy 
toddy,  seven  shillings  six  pence ;  rum  punch,  fifteen  shillings ; 
brandy  punch,  twelve ;  rum  grog,  six ;  brandy  grog,  five.  Diet : 
one  meal,  one  shilling  six  pence;  lodging,  one  shilling  and 
three  pence;  'stablidge'  and  hay,  two  shillings;  oats  and  corn, 
nine  pence  per  gallon." 

The  prices  of  intoxicants'  is  hard  to  explain.  Rum  is  at 
the  rate  of  $5.00  per  gallon,  but  apparently  whiskey  is  only 
$1.25.  A  later  ordinance  of  prices,  made  May  10,  makes 
various  changes. 

"Breakfast,  fifty  cents;  dinner,  fifty;  supper,  fifty;  lodg- 
ing, twenty-five;  grain,  per  gallon,  twelve  and  one-half;  sta- 
blidge and  hay  per  night,  twenty-five;  Madera  Wine,  per  quart, 
one  dollar;  Champagne,  per  quart,  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents; 
other  wine,  per  quart,  fifty  cents ;  French  brandy,  twelve  and 
one-half  cents  per  gill;  Rum,  twelve  and  one-half  cents  per 
gill;  Gin,  twelve  and  one-half  cents  per  gill." 

149 


Some  af  the  Judges 


A  pure  judiciary  is  one  of  the  best  assurances  of  good 
government,  and  Virginia  is  proud  of  her  Judges,  who  on  the 
average,  have  been  and  are  men  of  learning,  and  acknowledged 
ability. 

In  this  book,  we  can  only  chronicle  briefly  the  names  of 
some  who  have  presided  in  the  Circuit  Courts  of  this  circuit. 

First  is  the  name  of  John  Tayloe  Lomax,  who  had  occu- 
pied a  chair  in  the  law  school  at  the  University  of  Virginia, 
and  who  had  written  several  books  treating  on  law.  before  he 
came  to  preside  as  judge  here. 

Richard  Coleman,  of  the  distinguished  family  of  that 
name  from  Caroline  County ; 

Eustace  Conway,  one  of  the  very  youngest  men  elected  by 
the  people,  and  who  died  in  a  few  months  after  he  had 
assumed  the  duties ; 

John  Critcher,  who  soon  resigned  the  judicial  office  to 
become  an  officer  in  the  Confederate  Army; 

William  Stone  Barton,  who  was  a  splendid  Judge,  a  fear- 
less soldier  and  a  Christian  ; 

John  E.  Mason,  who  executed  all  the  duties  of  his  high 
office  intelligently  and  conscientiously. 


150 


Re  hoes  of  the  Past 

*  Ghosts  of  Dead  Hours,  and  Days  That  Once  Were  Fair' 


Fredericksburg  was,  in  anti-bellum  days,  the  center  of  a 
large  number  of  slave  holding  land  proprietors  who  lived 
within  its  gates,  yet  cultivated  their  farms  in  the  adjacent 
territory,  hence  the  colored  population  of  the  town  was  large ; 
and  very  much  to  the  credit  of  these  colored  people  as  well 
as  a  testimonial  to  the  manner  of  their  treatment,  and  to  the 
methods  of  their  humane  and  kind  discipline,  the  colored 
population  was  law  abiding  and  polite.  They  were  religious 
in  their  tendencies,  and  church  going  in  their  practices.  For 
several  years  they  worshipped  in  a  church  of  their  own  situ- 
ated on  the  banks  of  the  Rappahannock  known  as  Shiloh 
Baptist  Church  —  for  in  this  section  they  were  Baptist  in  their 
creed.  After  the  war,  in  consequence  of  some  feuds  and  fac- 
tions, they  divided  up  into  several  churches,  all  of  the  Baptist 
denomination.  Clinging  to  the  name,  there  is  now  "Shiloh 
Old  Site"  —  and  "Shiloh  New  Site"  and  some  mild  rivalry. 

Among  the  old  time  colored  brethren  were  some  unique 
characters.  We  note  a  few  only :  Scipio,  or  as  he  called  him- 
self, Scipio  Africanus  from  Ethiopia,  was  very  popular;  kindly 
and  charitable  in  disposition  he  was  probably  the  only  infidel 
among  that  race.  One  afternoon,  at  a  Baptizing  which  always 
took  place  in  the  River,  a  very  fat  sister  came  near  being 
drowned.  Aftet  she  was  immersed  by  the  preacher,  gasping 
and  struggling,  she  came  up  and  Scip  becoming  excited  yelled 
to  the  colored  divine  —  "Stop  there  Brother !  Stop  I  tell  you  ! 
If  you  douse  that  gal  again  some  white  man  goin'  to  lose  a 
valuable  nigger  by  this  here  foolishness !"  Needless  to  say 
the  indignant  divine  released  the  sister  and  turned  his  wrath 
on  Scipio. 

I5i 


About  the  Colored  People 

Another  colored  character  was  Edmund  Walker,  who 
kept  a  coffee  house.  He  openly  proclaimed  he  wanted  no 
"poor  white  trash."  Over  his  emporium  in  big  letters  flour- 
ished this  sign  —  "walk  in  gentlemen,  sit  at  your  ease,  Pay 
for  what  you  call  for,  and  call  for  what  you  please." 

Jim  Williams  was  known  as  a  good  cook,  as  well  as 
huntsman.  His  Master,  Col.  Taliaferro  told  Jim  one  day  that 
he  expected  great  men  for  dinner  some  time  soon,  and  "Jim, 
I  want  a  turkey,  a  fat  turkey  fattened  in  a  coop,  not  shot  Jim !" 
When  the  day  came  and  dinner  was  served,  Col.  Taliaferro's 
knife  in  carving,  struck  a  shot  or  two.  Infuriated,  the  old 
Colonel  yelled  at  Jim  —  "Didn't  I  tell  yon  not  to  bring  me  any 
turkey  with  a  shot  in  it?"  Jim  who  had  obtained  the  turkey 
after  dark  replied,  "Dem  shots  was  'tended  for  me  not  for 
the  turkey.  The  white  folks  shot  at  me,  but  the  turkey  got 
the  shot." 

The  loyalty  of  the  colered  men  and  women  for  their 
old  Masters  and  Mistresses  during  the  war  cannot  be  com- 
mended too  highly.  Told  time  and  again  that  a  victory  for 
the  Federal  soldiers  meant  their  freedom,  many  of  them  re- 
fused to  leave  their  old  homes,  and  remained  steadfast  to  the 
end.  While  we  cannot  enumerate  many  of  these,  the  oppor- 
tunity to  chronicle  the  name  of  one,  still  living  cannot  be 
overlooked.  The  Rev.  Cornelius  Lucas,  who  in  the  dark  and 
dreadful  days  of  war.  followed  his  old  owners,  the  Pollocks, 
is  with  us  yet.  He  was  with  them  on  the  march  and  in  camp, 
waited  on  them,  and  ministered  to  them.  One  of  the  Chapters 
of  the  Daughters  of  the  Confederacy  in  this  town,  recently 
decorated  him  with  its  testimonial,  its  cross  of  honor. 

We  know  of  no  locality  situated  so  near  the  Mason  and 
Dixon  line  as  is  Fredericksburg  where  the  Union  Armies 
came  with  their  propaganda  of  freedom  for  the  slaves,  which 
presents  more  of  the  love  of  the  former  slaves  for  their  former 
Masters,  and  more  obedience  to  law  and  order  than  is  the  case 
with  the  colored  people  of  the  town  of  Fredericksburg,  for 
with  rare  exceptions,  there  has  been  no  flagrant  violation 
of   the  laws.      We  are  of  the  opinion   that   this  book  would 

Is2 


When  Andrew  Jackson  Came 

not  indeed  respond  to  the  requirements  of  endeavoring  to 
sketch  the  town  and  its  life,  without  embodying  within  its 
pages  what  it  includes  of  the  colored  men  and  women  whose 
lives  have  been  spent  within  its  limits. 

Early  in  the  nineteenth  century,  on  May  7th,  1833,  Fred- 
ericksburg was  visited  by  President  Andrew  Jackson  and 
escort,  the  occasion,  one  of  the  most  important  of  that  period, 
being  the  laying  of  the  corner  stone  of  the  old  Mary  Wash- 
ington Monument.  People  from  all  over  this  general  section 
gathered  to  greet  the  hero  of  New  Orleans,  and  in  addition  to 
the  detachment  of  Marines,  which  was  the  President's  honor 
guard,  military  organizations  from  Washington,  Alexandria, 
Fauquier  County  and  Fredericksburg,  led  by  Col.  John  Bank- 
head,  chief  marshal,  took  part  in  the  large  parade  that  pre- 
ceded the  ceremonies. 

History  has  recorded  for  us  correctly  what  took  place 
on  the  occasion.  The  President  spoke  as  did  also  other  dis- 
tinguished men  and,  as  in  those  remote  days  orators  were  not 
sparing  with  the  time  they  took,  undoubtedly  the  long  suffer- 
ing people  stood  a  verbal  fusilage  that  lasted  hours.  But 
in  the  end  they  were  repaid,  for  the  program  was  followed 
by  feasting  and  drinking  and  a  general  merry  time,  at  which 
wines,  liquors  and  barbacued  beef  were  served  to  5,000  people, 
under  a  big  tent. 

The  main  reception  was  held  in  the  old  Wallace  house, 
which  formerly  stood  on  the  site  now  occupied  by  the  Baker 
and  Wallace  wholesale  drygoods  house,  and  it  was  the  scene 
of  an  incident  that  convulsed  the  dignified  gathering,  which 
was  hard  put  to  control  its  laughter.    It  came  about  as  follows. 

While  traveling  by  road  from  Quantico  (which  was 
reached  by  boat  from  Washington,)  to  Fredericksburg,  the 
presidential  party  encountered  a  Major  Randolph,  of  the  army, 
who  lately  had  been  court  martialed  and  reprimanded  on  a 
charge  that  now  is  unknown.  Major  Randolph  had  appealed 
the  decision  of  the  court  to  the  President,  who  much  to  the 
indignation    of    the    Major,    approved    the    findings.     When 

153 


General  I. re's  Week's  Visit 

Major  Randolph  met  the  President,  he  stopped,  saluted  and 
then  questioned  him  regarding  his  decision.  The  President's 
replies  were  not  satisfactory  to  the  indignant  major  and  he 
pulled  the  nose  of  the  Hero  of  New  Orleans.  News  of  the 
occurrence  quickly  got  about  the  town. 

That  night  a  certain  old  gentleman  of  the  most  generous 
hospitality  and  the  kindest  of  hearts  but  with  very  poor  social 
instincts,  was  introduced  to  the  President.  His  mental  processes 
are  not  known,  naturally,  but  probably  in  a  desire  to  be  espe- 
cially gracious  and  to  show  that  Fredericksburg  and  its  people 
were  deeply  considerate  of  the  welfare  of  their  President,  and 
concerned  in  all  that  happened  to  him,  the  old  gentleman 
grasped  the  hand  of  the  chief  dignitary  of  the  land,  bowed  very 
low  and  said,  "Mr.  President.  1  am  indeed  very  glad  to  meet 
you  and  I  sincerely  hope,  Sir,  that  Major  Randolph  did  not 
hurt  you  when  he  pulled  your  nose  to-day." 

The  President  flared  up  momentarily  but  seeing  the  inno- 
cence written  in  the  countenance  of  the  old  gentleman,  and  the 
convulsions  of  those  around  him,  he  joined  heartily  in  the 
laughter  and  assured  his  questioner  that  he  was  quite  un- 
harmed. 


In  1869  the  Episcopal  Council  of  the  State  gathered  n 
St.  George's  Church  and  to  this  Council  as  a  delegate  from 
Grace  Church,  Lexington,  of  which  he  was  a  vestryman,  came 
General  Robert  E.  Lee  the  beloved  hero  of  the  South.  Just 
across  the  street  from  St.  George's  Church  was  the  home  of 
Judge  William  S.  Barton  and  there  he  was  the  honored  guest. 
Coming  so  shortly  after  the  close  of  the  war  when  the  people 
were  in  almost  a  frenzy  of  sympathy  for  him  and  sorrow  for 
their  "Lost  Cause"  he  produced  an  impression  that  will  never 
be  forgotten  by  those  who  saw  him. 

The  Barton  house  was  besieged  by  young  and  old, 
anxious  to  shake  hands  with  him.  The  P>artons  gave  a  large 
reception,  and  the  writer  recalls  that  scene  as  if  it  were 
yesterday. 

154 


General  Lee's  Week's  Visit 

General  Lee  stood  with  Judge  Barton  and  his  stately 
wife;  General  Barton  and  his  wife,  and  the  peerless  beauty, 
Mary  Triplett,  who  was  the  niece  of  the  Bartons.  To  describe 
General  Lee  would  be  superfluous.  The  majesty  of  his  pres- 
ence has  been  referred  to.  He  inspired  no  awe  or  fear, 
but  a  feeling  of  admiration  as  if  for  a  superior  being.  People 
who  spoke  to  him  turned  away  with  a  look  of  happiness,  as 
if  some  long  felt  wish  had  been  gratified.  Toward  the  con- 
clusion of  the  reception,  when  only  a  few  intimate  friends 
remained,  some  of  the  young  girls  ventured  to  ask  for  a  kiss, 
which  was  given  in  fatherly  fashion.  The  Council  lasted  a 
week,  from  Sunday  to  Sunday  and  for  that  time  General  Lee 
remained  at  the  Bartons. 

The  home  life  of  this  truly  representative  Virginia  family 
brings  back  elusive  dreams  of  the  charmed  days  of  old  when 
a  gentle  elegance,  a  dignity,  a  grace  of  welcome  that  was 
unsurpassed  in  any  land,  made  them  ideal  as  homes  and 
supreme  in  hospitality,  and  nowhere  was  this  more  clearly 
evidenced  than  in  the  family  of  Judge  Barton.  General  Lee 
was  serenaded  here  by  Prof.  A.  B.  Bowering's  Band,  the  same 
Band  which  accompanied  the  gallant  30th  Virginia  Regiment 
on  its  marches,  and  cheered  them  in  Camp  with  patriotic  airs. 

It  was  Bowering's  Band  that,  when  the  body  of  Stonewall 
Jackson  was  removed  from  the  Capitol  in  Richmond  to  the 
railway  station,  played  the  Funeral  Dirge.  Prof.  Bowering 
has  led  other  bands  since  then,  and  is  at  present  the  conductor 
of  an  excellent  one. 

It  was  at  about  this  time  that  Father  Ryan  wrote  one  of 
his  most    beautiful    poems,  of    which  this  is  the  last    verse : 


"Forth  from  its  scabbard,  all  in  vain, 
Bright  flashed  the  sword  of  Lee; 
Tis  shrouded  now  in  its  sheath  again, 
It  sleeps  the  sleep  of  our  noble  slain 
Defeated,  yet  without  a  stain, 
Proudly  and   peacefully.'' 


155 


Mayors  of  Fredericksburg 

The  following  is  a  chronological  list  of  mayors  of  Freder- 
icksburg with  the  number  of  years  served  by  each :  Dr.  Charles 
Mortimer,  3 ;  William  McWilliams,  1  ;  James  Somerville,  3 ; 
George  Weedon,  1 ;  George  French,  8 ;  Benjamin  Day,  2 ; 
William  Harvey,  2  and  less  than  a  month  of  the  third  year, 
when  he  died  in  office;  Fontaine  Maury,  3;  William  Taylor,  1 ; 
David  C.  Ker,  2 ;  William  S.  Stone,  1  ;  Charles  L.  Carter,  1 
year  and  six  months,  resigning  when  half  his  first  term  was 
out;  William  Smock,  six  months,  serving  the  unexpired  half 
of  Charles  L.  Carter's  first  term;  Richard  Johnston,  1  ;  Joseph 
Walker,  1  ;  John  Scott,  1  ;  Garret  Minor,  2 ;  Robert  Mackay, 
2 ;  David  Briggs,  1. 

Briggs'  term  ended  in  March,  1821.  Up  to  this  time  no 
mayor  had  served  more  than  1  year  consecutively,  but  after 
this  date  several  served  for  many  years  following  each  other. 
Following  Briggs  was  Robert  Lewis,  who  died  in  office  after 
nearly  nine  years;  Thomas  Goodwin,  died  in  office  after  nearly 
seven  years;  John  H.  Wallace,  2;  Benjamin  Clarke  6;  Robert 
Baylor  Semple,  died  in  office  after  nearly  nine  years;  John  L. 
Marye,  Jr.,  1  ;  Peter  Goolrick,  3  years  and  one  month,  resign- 
ing just  after  the  beginning  of  his  fourth  term  and  almost 
immediately  before  the  Civil  War;  John  S.  Cardwell,  2;  Wil- 
liam S.  Scott,  1  ;  Montgomery  Slaughter,  the  Wrar  Mayor, 
who  succeeded  Peter  Goolrick,  (when  the  latter  resigned 
because  the  council  had  refused  to  endorse  some  of  his  appoint- 
ments), and  served  until  removed  by  the  military  authorities 
after  a  few  days  more  than  eight  years.  He  was  succeeded 
by  Charles  E.  Mallam,  appointed  by  the  military  authorities  in 
April,  1868,  and  removed  by  them  in  just  a  little  more  than  a 
year.  William  E.  Nye,  who  followed,  was  appointed  by  the 
military  but  resigned  in  less  than  a  year.  He  was  succeeded 
by  Lawrence  B.  Rose,  elected  by  the  council  and  twice  later 
by  the  people,  serving  altogether  5  years,  two  months  and 
twenty  days,  dying  during  his  last  term;  William  Roy  Mason, 
resigning  after  serving  twenty-seven  days  of  his  first  term,  to 
which  he  was  elected  by  the  people.     Robert  Banks  Berrey,  2; 

156 


Building  of  the  Railroad 

Hugh  S.  Doggett,  3;  Joseph  W.  Sener,  4;  Josiah  Hazard,  4; 
Absalom  Rowe,  9  years  and  eleven  months,  dying  in  office 
during  his  last  term ;  W.  Seymore  White,  1  year  and  not  quite 
five  months,  dying  in  office;  Henry  R.  Gouldman,  seven 
months;  Marion  G.  Willis,  6  years;  Thomas  P.  Wallace,  4; 
H.  Lewis  Wallace,  4;  Josiah  P.  Rowe,  a  son  of  Absalom  Rowe, 
8 ;  J.  Garnett  King  is  at  present  serving. 

So  far  as  can  be  gathered  ex-Mayor  J.  P.  Rowe  is 
the  only  son  of  a  mayor  who  ever  held  the  same  office  which 
his  father  had  filled  before  him. 

The  Richmond,  Fredericksburg  and  Potomac  Railroad, 
the  great  Trunk  Line  between  the  North  and  the  South,  in 
1837  completed  its  line  to  Fredericksburg  by  rail,  a  stage  line 
thence  to  Potomac  Creek,  and  steamer  connection  was  made 
from  here  to  Washington.  In  1842,  on  the  18th  of  November, 
the  line  was  completed  to  Aquia  Creek,  making  it  a  total  of 
75  miles  in  length.  In  i860  Peter  V.  Daniel  was  elected 
president,  and  during  his  administration  the  road  was  fear- 
fully damaged  by  the  Civil  War.  In  1865,  the  company,  after 
much  rebuilding,  again  opened  service  to  Aquia  Creek.  In 
1872  the  line  was  extended  to  Quantico,  and  connecting  there 
with  the  Wrashington-Quantico  road,  filled  in  the  missing  link 
of  railway  from  the  North  to  the  South. 

The  railroad  has  always  been  financially  successful  and 
has  provided  a  service  of  exceptional  convenience.  It  has  the 
remarkable  record  of  never  having  killed  a  passenger  within 
its  cars,  and  but  two  from  any  cause  whatever.  Under  the 
Hon.  Eppa  Hunton  it  operates  now  with  great  effi- 
ciency and  over  its  tracks  pass  a  string  of  trains  during  all 
of  the  twenty-four  hours.  On  all  of  its  trains  an  employee 
calls  attention  just  before  passing  the  house  where  Stone- 
wall Jackson  died.  The  house  has  been  purchased  and  pre- 
served to  posterity  by  the  railroad — an  act  for  which  it  deserves 
the  highest  commendation,  as  it  does  for  the  monument  it  gen- 

157 


Jefferson  Dci7-is'  Speech 

erously  built  at  Hamilton's   Crossing,   where  heavy  fighting 
occurred  during  the  battle  of  Fredericksburg. 

Jefferson  Davis,  when  a  member  of  the  Senate  ,was  loath 
to  leave  that  body  and  opposed  breaking  up  of  the  Union. 
But,  when  his  own  State  of  Mississippi  called,  he  answered. 
He  had  been  educated  at  West  Point  and  had  fought  in 
Mexico.  When  the  representatives  met  at  Montgomery,  Ala- 
bama, and  elected  him  President  of  the  Confederacy,  he  ac- 
cepted. When  the  seat  of  government  was  moved  to  Rich- 
mond, he,  of  course,  came  with  it. 

Soon  after  this  he  paid  Fredericksburg  a  visit  and  while 
in  the  town  was  a  guest  of  Temple  Doswell,  Esq.,  at  his  home 
on  the  corner  of  Princess  Anne  and  Lewis  Streets.  As  soon 
as  it  was  known  that  he  was  here  a  band,  accompanied  by  a 
multitude  of  citizens  and  Confederate  soldiers,  gave  him  a  com- 
plimentary reception,  to  which  he  replied,  in  a  brief  address, 
from  the  porch.  The  writer  remembers  very  clearly  how  he 
appeared.  He  was  tall,  thin,  beardless,  slightly  bald,  dressed 
in  black  broad  cloth  that  was  slightly  worn  looking. 

Mr.  Davis  came  to  review  the  troops  stationed  on  the 
Potomac  at  Acquia,  as  well  as  some  encamped  at  Fredericks- 
burg. He  expressed  himself  as  very  much  pleased,  not  only 
with  the  hospitable  reception  accorded  him,  but  also,  with  the 
conditions  of  the  troops  and  the  general  management  of  the 
situation  then  under  General  Daniel  Ruggles. 

It  is  an  unusual  coincidence  that  during  the  war  between 
the  States,  Fredericksburg  should  have  had  within  its  gates, 
President  Lincoln  of  the  United  States  and  President  Jefferson 
Davis  of  the  Confederate  States,  and  that  each  made  a  public 
address  from  places  three  blocks  apart. 

This  National  Cemetery  is  located  on  one  of  the  most 
prominent  and  imposing  hills  overlooking  the  City  of  Freder- 
icksburg, formerly  called  Willis  Hill-  On  July  15,  1865,  this 
location  was  selected  and  the  cemetery  begun.  It  has  since 
been  made  beautiful  with  shrubbery  and  flowers  and  terraced, 

158 


The  National  Cemetery 

and  now  it  is  known  for  its  attractive  appearance.  It  is,  in 
fact,  counted  as  one  of  the  most  beautiful  cemeteries  in  this 
Country.  It  comprises  about  twelve  acres.  Of  the  soldiers 
gathered  from  the  adjacent  battlefields  there  are  of  the  known 
dead  2,496  and  of  the  unknown  12,798. 

Very  many  handsome  monuments  are  erected  on  these 
grounds,  among  them  one  by  General  Butterfield  in  memory 
of  the  5th  Corps;  another  to  General  Humphreys  by  the  State 
of  Pennsylvania ;  and  by  the  same  State  a  monument  in  mem- 
ory of  the  127th  Pennsylvania  Volunteers.  Head  stones  mark 
the  resting  place  of  very  many  others. 

On  each  recurring  Decoration  Day,  May  30th,  from  a 
beautifully  constructed  forum,  services  are  held  in  tribute  to 
the  memory  of  the  brave  men  who  sleep  there.  At  these 
services  many  who  wore  the  grey  and  fought  on  the  other  side 
unite  with  the  boys  who  wore  the  blue,  in  paying  this  tribute. 

Near  Fredericksburg  Governor  Spottswood  instituted  the 
first  iron  work  in  America,  and  an  old  plate  cast  in  his  furnace 
is  now  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Val  Dannehl  of  this  city.  It 
is  probably  the  oldest  piece  of  cast  iron  in  America. 

Governor  Spottswood  built  the  village  of  Germanna  on 
he  upper  river  for  German  workmen  brought  over  here,  and 
it  was  from  that  place,  the  first  Courthouse  of  Spotsylvania 
County,  that  the  Knights  of  the  Golden  Horseshoe  began  their 
journey.  The  mansion  of  this  famous  Virginian  stood  close 
beside  the  Germanna  road. 

Today,  almost  on  that  spot,  stands  a  small  white  cottage, 
and  within  it  are  various  relics  of  the  Old  Governor  and  his 
family  and  of  the  battle  of  the  Wilderness. 

But  the  strangest  thing  about  the  small  cottage  is  that 
within  it  lives,  with  his  wife,  Alexander  Spottswood,  the  lineal 
descendant  of  the  Governor.  Mr.  Spottswood  stands  over  six 
feet,  erect  and  with  the  bearing  that  inevitably  proclaims  the 
descendants  of  great  men.  His  daughter  recently  married  Mr. 
E.  H.  Willis. 

159 


Patti  Once  Lived  Here 

Thus  a  Spottswood  lives  today  on  the  tract  where  the 
great  Virginia  Governor  built  his  mansion  and  where  he 
founded  the  famous  Spottswood  mines  and  furnace  almost 
two  hundred  years  ago. 

An  incident  brought  the  great  singer  Patti  to  Fredericks- 
burg, to  remain  for  some  time.  When  she  was  a  girl  of  six- 
teen, just  beginning  to  train  for  her  great  career  in  Grand 
Opera,  her  brother  Carlo  Patti  expected  to  institute  a  school 
of  music  and  was  here  for  that  purpose  when  he  was  taken 
suddenly  ill.  She  came  with  her  sister  Madam  Strackosh  to 
see  her  brother.  He  remained  ill  for  months  and  his  sisters 
were  with  him  during  the  entire  time.  They  boarded  at  the 
Old  Exchange  Hotel  on  Main  Street,  now  the  Hotel  Maury, 
and  gave  more  than  one  concert  at  what  was  known  then  as 
"The  Citizens  Hall."  If  there  are  few  here  now  who  remem- 
ber her,  there  is  still  among  us  one  woman,  a  little  child  at 
the  time,  whom  the  singer  often  held  in  her  arms  and  caressed. 
The  parents  of  the  child  were  boarding  at  the  Hotel  tem- 
porarily and  the  mother  and  Adelina  became  great  friends 
and  remained  so  for  many  years.  Madam  Strackosh  and  her 
famous  sister  said  they  enjoyed  "real  life"  in  our  little  South- 
ern town.  Carlo  after  regaining  his  health  went  farther  South, 
joined  a  Confederate  Company,  and  again  as  one  of  the  boys 
in  gray  under  the  stars  and  bars,  was  in  Fredericksburg  and 
was  well  known  to  the  writer.  He  entertained  the  weary  boys 
in  camp  when  the  hard  days  were  over,  with  his  beautiful 
songs. 

John  Forsythe  referred  to  in  the  above  order  was 
born  in  r  ~8 1  in  a  frame  house,  now  standing  at  the  corner  of 
Prince  Edward  and  Fauquier  Streets.  He  graduated  from 
the  Princeton  Academy  early  in  life,  moving  later  with  his 
family  to  Georgia  where  he  studied  law.  practiced  and  in 
1808  he  was  elected  Attorney  General,  and  in  18 12  was  chosen 
Congressman  and  served  until  1818. 

In  1 8 19  he  was  appointed  Minister  to  Spain  and  while 
acting  as  Minister,  he  was  instrumental  in  the  ratification  of 

TfX) 


Joe  Hooker  Comes  Again 

the  treaty  with  the  Country  for  the  cession  of  Florida  to  the 
United  States. 

In  1827  he  was  elected  Governor  of  Georgia  and  in  1829 
became  a  member  of  the  Senate  and  was  in  that  body  when 
he  accepted  the  office  of  Secretary  of  State,  which  position 
he  occupied  to  the  end  of  Van  Buren's  administration.  He 
died  in  the  City  of  Washington,  October  21,  1841,  and  is 
buried  in  the  Congressional  Cemetery. 

Fighting  "Joe"  Hooker,  as  his  troops  called  him  and  as 
he  was,  came  here  shortly  after  the  war  to  gather  evidence  to 
refute  the  charges  his  enemies  at  the  North  were  disseminating 
against  him  in  a  campaign  of  scandal.  He  attempted  while 
here,  and  he  was  here  for  a  long  period,  to  show  that  his 
failure  was  not  entirely  his  own  fault,  and  the  evidence  which 
he  procured  ,  together  with  his  own  statements  proved  suffici- 
ently that  Gen.  Hooker's  plan  for  the  campaign  at  Chancel- 
lorsville  far  surpassed  any  conception  of  any  other  Northern 
general.  They  left  the  inference  also  (Lincoln  had  warned 
him  in  a  letter  that  his  insubordination  to  Burnside  and  other 
superior  officers  would  one  day  result  in  his  inferiors  failing 
to  co-operate  with  him),  that  Sedgwick  had  not  put  his  full 
heart  into  the  battle,  for,  important  factor  in  the  movement 
tuat  he  was,  he  started  one  day  late  and  allowed  4,000  men  at 
Salem  Church  to  hold  back  the  advance  of  his  30,000  men. 
Had  he  won  this  fight,  he  could  have  been  at  Chancellorsville 
and  turned  the  tide  of  battle  long  before  Jackson's  genius  had 
ruined  Hooker's  army. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was  the  son  of  Captain  and 
Mrs.  Joseph  W.  Sener.  His  father  was  several  times  Mayor 
of  this  city.  Judge  Sener  graduated  when  quite  a  young 
man,  with  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Law,  from  the  Uni- 
versity of  Virginia,  and  was  a  very  successful  practitioner 
for  many  years  in  the  courts  of  this  State.  He  was  elected 
to  represent  the  first  Virginia  district  in  the  Congress  of  the 

161 


Abraham  Lincoln's  Address 

United  States  several  years  after  the  civil  war.  After  his 
retirement  from  Congress  he  was  appointed  by  President 
Hayes  Chief  Justice  of  the  then  Territory  of  Wyoming.  After 
performing  the  duties  of  this  office  very  acceptably  for  sev- 
eral years  he  returned  to  Virginia,  and  again  took  up  the 
practice  of  his  profession.  Much  of  his  time  was  spent  in 
Washington  where  he  died.  He  was  buried  in  Fredericksburg 
with  Masonic  honors,  being  a  very  active  member  of  Lodge 
No.  4,  A.  F.  and  A.  M.  of  this  city. 

When  the  Federal  army  first  held  Fredericksburg,  during 
the  winter  of  1861,  President  Lincoln  came  to  stay  at  Chatham 
and  hold  a  grand  review  of  the  army  of  the  Potomac.  He 
was  accompanied  by  Win.  H.  Seward,  Secretary  of  State,  and 
Edward  Staunton,  Secretary  of  War.  On  the  plateau  behind 
Chatham  there  was  held  a  great  artillery  review.  On  the  fol- 
lowing day  the  President,  accompanied  by  some  of  his  cabinet 
officers  and  the  staff  officers  of  the  army,  crossed  the  river  on 
the  lower  pontoon  bridge.  They  rode  immediately  to  the 
provost  marshal's  headquarters  in  the  building  on  the  corner 
of  Princess  Anne  and  George  Streets,  which  the  National  Bank 
now  occupies.  After  taking  lunch  with  General  Patrick  and 
in  response  to  the  calls  of  some  troops  present,  President 
Lincoln  from  the  front  steps  made  a  short  but  splendid 
address.  The  writer  of  this,  sat  on  the  steps  of  the  St.  George's 
Church,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  street  and  heard  President 
Lincoln's  speech. 

On  the  Bowling  Green  road,  a  mile  from  town,  a  stone 
marked  "Stuart- Pelham"  shows  about  where  those  two  bril- 
liant young  men  met  when  they  advanced  their  guns  against 
the  Northern  host.  In  the  woods,  back  of  Fredericksburg,  a 
stone  marks  General  Lee's  winter  headquarters  —  where  stood 
his  tents.  The  spot  where  Cobb  fell  is  marked,  and  there  is  a 
marker  where  the  pontoon  landed  near  the  foot  of  Hawk 
street.     The  New  Jersey  monuments  are  near  Salem  Church, 

162 


Other  Distinguished  Visitors 

General  Hays  monument  (where  he  was  killed)  near  Plank 
road  on  the  Brock  road.  "Lee  to  the  Rear"  one  mile  west  of 
Brock  on  Plank  road,  Sedgwick's  monument  near  Spotsylvania 
Court  House.  Where  Jackson  fell,  monument  two  miles  west 
of  Chancellorsville  on  Plank  road. 

In  the  midst  of  the  war  England  sent  Lord  Wolesley, 
who  became  the  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  English  Army, 
to  serve  a  short  time  as  Military  Observer  with  the  army  of 
General  Lee.  He  was  with  General  Lee  about  Fredericksburg 
and  in  his  commentaries  on  him  said,  "There  was  about  Gen- 
eral Lee  an  air  of  fine  nobility,  which  I  have  never  encountered 
in  any  other  man  I  have  met."  General  Wolesley  attended  a 
dance  here  in  the  house  then  called  the  Alsop  house,  on 
Princess  Anne  Street,  now  occupied  by  the  Shepherds. 

The  Prince  of  Wales,  who  afterwards  became  King 
Edward  the  Seventh,  visited  Fredericksburg  in  1859.  The 
Prince  was  accompanied  by  the  Duke  of  New  Castle,  Lord 
Lyons  and  others  of  the  Royal  family.  They  were  welcomed 
here  in  an  address  by  the  late  Maj.  Elliott  M.  Braxton.  The 
local  band  played  "God  save  the  Queen"  and  flowers  and 
bouquets  were  presented  to  the  Prince. 

Among  those  who  came  in  time  of  peace  we  record  the 
name  of  one  whose  fame  is  known  to  all  English  readers. 
Thackeray,  the  great  English  novelist,  was  here,  and  on  taking 
leave  said,  "To  come  to  Virginia  and  mingle  with  its 
people,  to  learn  how  they  live  and  see  their  home  life,  is  to 
have  England  pictured  to  you  again." 

Again  the  father  left,  and  we  next  hear  of  the  little  girl 
as  Madam  Romero,  wife  of  the  once  Secretary  of  State  of 
Mexico  and  then  Ambassador  to  the  United  States  from 
Mexico.  During  the  stay  of  Ambassador  Romero  at  Wash- 
ington, this  girl  of  Virginia  lineage  became  the  leader  of  the 
social  life  of  the  Capitol  of  our  Nation,  and  one  of  the  most 
popular  women  ever  known  there. 

163 


Other  Distinguished  Visitors 

It  was  perfectly  natural  that  Chester  A.  Arthur  should 
be  often  a  visitor  to  Fredericksburg-  for  he  married  Miss  Ellen 
Lewis  Herndon,  of  this  city,  a  daughter  of  Captain  IV.  L. 
Herndon,  whose  distinguished  life  has  been  touched  upon. 
The  home  in  which  President  Arthur  stopped  on  his  visit  is 
on  Main  Street,  now  occupied  by  Mrs.  R.  B.  Buffington. 

Certainly  the  greatest  orator  who  ever  visited  Fredericks- 
burg was  Edward  Everett,  of  Massachusetts,  distinguished 
among  literary  men  of  his  day.  He  came  to  this  city  to  speak 
and  was  entertained  in  several  homes  here.  He  afterwards 
spoke  all  over  the  Nation  in  an  effort  to  aid  the  Mount 
Vernon  Association  to  purchase  Washington's  home. 

An  English  officer  Colonel  Henderson,  whose  life  of 
"Stonewall  Jackson"  is  from  a  literary  and  military  stand- 
point the  best  work  of  its  nature  in  the  world,  came  here  and 
stayed  for  a  long  period  securing  data  for  his  book.  He  lived 
during  his  time  here  at  the  Old  Eagle  Hotel,  now  the  Hotel 
Maury. 

Among  our  old  time  merchants  was  Mr.  William  Allen. 
His  son  married  and  lived  in  many  foreign  lands.  The  son's 
wife  died  and  he  returned  to  visit  his  father  bringing  his 
beautiful  little  daughter,  a  child  of  ten  or  eleven  years.  The 
writer  recalls  her  at  that  time,  with  her  lovely  golden  curls. 

Another  nobleman  who  came  here  drawn  by  the  quaint- 
ness  of  the  old  American  town  and  his  desire  to  see  the  home 
of  Washington,  was  the  Count  De  Paris,  of  the  French  Royal 
Family. 

The  Irish  poet,  Thomas  Moore,  was  here  once  and  de- 
clared he  would  not  leave  America  until  he  had  been  a  guest 
in  an  old  Virginia  home. 


164 


Where  Beauty  Blends 

Old  Gardens,  at  Old  Mansions,   Where  Bloom Flo-ivers  from  Long  Ago 

Buds  and  blossoms  everywhere !  and  honey-bees,  butter- 
flies and  birds'!  It  is  Spring  now  in  the  lush  meadows  and 
sweeping  hills  about  Fredericksburg.  Flowers,  leaves,  shrubs 
and  vines  have  burst  forth  once  more  with  joy  and  life.  The 
wild  tangle  of  beauty  and  fragrance  is  everywhere  perceptible ; 
hedges  of  honeysuckle,  whose  hidden  foundation  is  the  crumb- 
ling old  stone  wall,  trellises  heavy  with  old-time  roses, 
arbors  redolent  with  sweet  grapevine,  sturdy  oaks  and  maples, 
whose  branches  shelter  the  clinging  tendrils  and  the  purple 
wistaria  blossoms,  borders,  gay  with  old-time  favorites,  helio- 
trope, portulaca,  petunias,  verbenas  and  hollyhocks,  and  the 
loved  English  ivy,  with  a  welcome  right  of  way  wherever  its 
fancy  leads. 

The  characteristic  which  is  conceded  to  be  the  chief  charm 
of  Fredericksburg  is  its  historic  association  and  its  picturesque 
past.  This  feature  alone  does  not  appeal  to  all  who  agree 
that  the  old  town  is  charming,  but  when  this  is  combined  with 
romantic  and  interesting  tales  of  the  gentry  of  years  agone 
who  have  won  immortality  not  only  in  this  locality,  but  in 
this  world,  the  charm  is  undeniably  irresistible  to  all.  Freder- 
icksburg has  many  beauty  spots  which  combine  these  condi- 
tions —  spots  which  are  of  increasing  pride  to  residents  and 
visitors. 

Some  of  the  gardens  here  are  old,  very  old,  antedating 
by  many  years  the  celebrated  formal  gardens  at  Mt.  Vernon, 
but  few  preserve  so  well  their  pristine  form  Though  the 
box-bordered  parterres  have  largely  disappeared,  the  old-time 
favorites  are  here  still,  the  same  loved  shrubbery  "just  grown 
tall,"   descended    from   those   set   out   originally   by   those   of 

165 


Mary  Washington's  Home 

generations  gone.     Mazie  V.  Caruthers  has,  in  a  few  words, 
unknowingly  delineated  some  of  the  garden  spots  here: 

'"Long,  brick-paved  paths,  beside  which  row  on  row, 
Madonna  lilies   in   their   sweetness   grow  — 
Planted  by  hands  to  dust  turned  long  ago; 

Odors  of  fern  and  moss  and  pine  are  there  — 

Wild  loveliness  of  roses  everywhere 

With  pinks  and  mignonette  their  fragrance  share ; 

Around  the  dial,  stained  by  sun  and  showers 
(Whose  slender  finger  marks  the  passing  hours), 
Stand  purple  iris,  proudest  of  the  flowers;" 

At  the  corner  of  Charles  and  Lewis  Streets  stands  the 
pretty  little  garden  spot,  which,  since  the  year  1775  has  been 
associated  with  Mary  Washington.  The  tall  and  vigorous, 
pungent  and  aromatic  box-wood  trees,  planted  by  her  own 
hand,  seem  typical  today  of  the  splendid  old  lady.  A  small 
section  of  the  pathway  bordered  by  the  same  old  shrub,  which 
led  to  "Betty's''  home  at  Kenmore,  is  still  here  And  here 
is  also  the  sweet-scented  lavender,  and  the  roses,  and  near  the 
high  board  fence  on  the  north,  is  the  sun  dial,  that  still  and 
silent  informant  of  the  passing  hours.  Washington,  Mason, 
Jefferson,  Marshall,  the  Lees  —  a  score  of  the  great  have  trod 
these  shaded  walks. 

Not  far  away  are  two  frame  structures.  The  style  of 
each  bears  the  unmistakable  mark  of  age,  though  the  date  of 
construction  is  undetermined.  Both  are  still  private  resi- 
dences, with  attractive  grounds.  From  the  continuity  of  the 
terraces,  it  is  supposed  that  in  other  days  only  one  spacious 
and  beautiful  terraced  lawn  was  here.  It  is  still  beautiful 
with  its  carefully  kept  grassy  -ward,  from  which  at  irregular 
intervals,  spring  the  majestic  Norway  maples,  the  black  wal- 
nuts, the  apple  trees,  and  lilacs,  the  flowering  almond,  and 
other  climbing  and  flowering  shrubs,  thick  with  picturesque 
bird  homes,  tenanted  year  after  year  by  possibly  the  same 
line  of  robin,  wren  and  oriole.  In  this  magnetic  atmosphere  was 
born  in  1781,  the  future  governor  of  Georgia,  John  Forsythe. 

166 


Z     )2  S 


Old  Main  Street  Homes 

Can  it  be  that  some  subtle  and  indefinable  influence  lurked  in 
these  magic  surroundings,  and  left  an  ineffaceable  impress  for 
good  upon  the  boy  ? 

A  delightful  old  colonial  home  is  the  brick  structure  on 
the  east  side  of  lower  Main  Street.  It  was  built  in  1764.  and 
its  present  attractive  appearance  attests  the  quality  of  material 
in  its  construction,  and  also  the  discerning  care  with  which 
the  old  home  has  ever  been  maintained.  In  Revolutionary 
times  it  was  the  residence  of  Dr.  Charles  Mortimer,  the  loved 
physician  of  Mary  Washington.  From  the  east  window  can 
be  seen  the  graceful  curves  of  the  river,  and  the  Stafford  hills 
and  dales  still  form  a  pretty  picture  in  their  verdant  beauty 
and  symmetry.  Within  the  solid  ivy  covered  brick  wall  en- 
circling the  premises  two  of  the  most  magnificent  trees  of  this 
section  are  noted,  a  Norway  fir  and  a  southern  magnolia 
which,  with  other  ornamental  trees  and  shrubbery,  and  a 
charming  rose  garden,  are  such  splendidly  beautiful  color 
schemes  that  one  is  constrained  to  linger  in  the  presence  of 
their  beauty  and  a^e. 

Across  the  street  stands  another  solid  brick  residence, 
which,  though  of  a  later  period  in  history,  is  equally  beautiful. 
It  is  the  one-time  home  of  Matthew  Fontaine  Maury,  one  of 
America's  greatest  men.  Its  architecture,  its  interior  decora- 
tion, its  moss-covered,  serpentine,  brick  walk  leading  to  the  old 
kitchen,  and  the  fascinating  flower  garden,  still  radiant  with 
old-time  favorites,  attest  the  age  of  this  old  home.  Nowhere 
does  the  trumpet  vine  attain  such  luxuriant  and  graceful 
growth,  and  many  other  varieties  of  flowering  shrubs  and 
vines  linger  in  the  sun  or  throw  their  fragrance  out  on  silent 
nights. 

Two  other  landmarks  in  the  list  of  charming  homes  built 
in  bygone  days  —  the  latter  part  of  the  iSth  century  —  each 
with  enchanting  grounds,  are  located  one  on  Hanover,  and  one 
on  upper  Main  Street.  These  are  the  old  homes  of  Dr.  James 
Carmichael,    and    Dr.    Robert    Welford.      Lineal    descendants 


*Betty  Lewis  —  Mary  Washington's  daughter. 

167 


Federal  and  Hazel  Hill 

occupy  both  of  these  premises  today,  and  with  the  same  loving 
care  the  bewildering  tangles  of  beauty  in  leaf,  bud,  and  blos- 
som, which  characterize  these  alluring  old  garden  spots,  with 
their  accompanying  moss-grown  brick  walks,  is  continued. 
The  Rappahannock  river  laves  the  east  slope  of  the  Wei  ford 
garden.  The  picturesque  windings  of  this  river,  and  its 
wooded  shores,  together  with  glimpses  of  the  ancient  and  in- 
teresting little  village  of  Falmouth  with  ''the  decent  Church 
that  tops  the  neighboring  hill,"  form  a  pleasing  panorama. 
At  the  old  Carmichael  home,  oak,  walnut,  apple,  and  mimosa 
trees,  with  a  pretty  arrangement  of  japonica,  crepe  myrtle, 
dogwood,  lilac,  English  ivy,  and  other  climbing  and  flowering 
shrubs,  combine  to  make  a  setting  of  alluring  beauty. 

Nearby,  and  still  on  Hanover  Street,  is  the  old  colonial 
residence  known  now  as  Federal  Hill,  the  one  time  home  of  the 
distinguished  attorney,  Thomas  Reade  Rootes.  Its  white 
enamelled  wainscoting,  panelling,  and  other  interior  decora- 
tions ;  its  colonial  doorways,  dormer  windows,  and  spacious 
grounds  where  old-time  favorites,  both  radiant  and  redolent 
are  enclosed  within  its  boxwood  hedges  and  honeysuckle  glen, 
all  bear  witness  to  a  carefully  preserved  and  graceful  old  age. 
Here  too  is  the  sun  dial,  its  pedestal  half  concealed  by  lux- 
uriant tangles. 

Beautiful  Flazel  Hill,  with  its  spreading  grounds,  the  old- 
time  residence  of  General  John  Minor;  and  the  unusually 
attractive  home  on  Princess  Anne  Street,  the  pre-revolution 
home  of  Charles  Dick,  supposed  with  every  proof  of  accuracy 
to  be  the  oldest  house  in  town:  Kenmore,  with  its  storied 
frescoes,  always  associated  with  Betty  Washington,  sister  of 
George,  where  graceful  wood  carving  was  done  by  Hessian 
prisoners,  is  magnificently  beautiful:  "the  Sentry  Box,"  on 
lower  Main  Street,  the  old  home  of  General  Hugh  Mercer, 
though  altered  and  modernized,. has  still  the  same  attractive 
grounds,  and  because  it  was  here  that  the  country  doctor, 
who  was  to  be  "General"  Hugh  Mercer  and  the  tavern  keeper 
who  was  to  be  "General"  George   Weedon  gained  the  hearts 

1 68 


Beautiful  Old  "Chatham" 

and  hands  of  pretty  Isabella  and  Catherine  Gordon,  one  infers 
that  this  was  once  the  trysting  place  for  many  a  gallant  cava- 
lier. All  these  historic  spots  deserve  front  rank  in  the  realm 
of  beautiful  and  interesting  old  age. 

Among  the  pleasant  places  worthy  of  consideration,  from 
an  historic,  and  artistic  viewpoint,  none  is  more  interesting 
than  old  Chatham,  on  Stafford  Heights,  directly  acros  the 
Rappahannock  from  Fredericksburg.  Situated  on  an  eminence 
commanding  an  extended  view  up  and  down  the  picturesque 
river,  and  with  glimpses  of  the  church  spires,  and  quaint  roof 
tops  of  the  old  town,  gleaming  through  the  splendid  shade 
trees  dotting  the  grounds,  it  has  stood  for  almost  200  years,  a 
typical  colonial  Manor  house,  with  characteristically  beautiful 
proportions,  an  example  of  English  material  and  English 
workmanship. 

It  was  built  in  the  year  1728  by  that  sterling  patriot, 
William  Fitzhugh.  "Fitzhugh  of  Chatham,"  as  he  was  known, 
was  the  descendant  of  the  old  Norman  of  the  same  name, 
progenitor  of  all  of  the  race  of  Fitzhugh  in  Virginia.  He 
was  the  intimate  friend  and  classmate  of  William  Pitt,  Earl  of 
Chatham,  and  the  plans  for  the  mansion  on  his  large  Virginia 
estate,  which  he  named  for  the  earl,  are  said,  with  every  proof 
of  accuracy,  to  have  been  drawn  by  Sir  Christopher  Wrenn. 

Writers  of  long  ago  tell  of  the  beautiful  box-bordered 
garden  at  Chatham,  and  of  the  wonderful  terraces,  built  by 
numberless  slaves,  "stepping  down  to  the  river  like  a  giant's 
stairway."  These  latter  still  exist  in  their  beauty,  and  form 
one  of  the  chief  attractions  of  the  place,  which  has  ever  been 
famous,  and  whose  most  recent  owner  was  the  brilliant 
journalist,  Mark  Sullivan,  and  Mrs.  Sullivan,  who  made  their 
home  there  until  recently. 

William  Fitzhugh,  Esq.,  married  Ann  Boiling  Randolph, 
and  their  daughter  Mary,  who  married  George  Washington 
Parke  Custis,  of  Arlington,  was  the  mother  of  Mary  Custis, 
the  wife  of  General  Robert  E.  Lee.  A  conversation  between 
General  Lee  and  Major  J.  Horace  Lacy,  (who  with  his  family 

169 


General  Lee  Spares  Chatham 

owned  and  occupied  Chatham  until  the  War  Between  the 
States)  is  illustrative  of  the  devotion  of  both  of  these  men 
for  the  old  colonial  homestead. 

On  the  day  before  the  battle  of  Fredericksburg,  Major 
Lacy  was  at  the  headquarters  battery  of  General  Lee.  By 
the  aid  of  field  glasses  he  saw  across  the  river  the  white 
porches  of  his  home  filled  with  Federal  officers,  and  simul- 
taneously there  was  wafted  on  the  breeze  the  strains  of 
"Yankee  Doodle"  and  "Hail  Columbia."  He  requested  Gen- 
eral Lee  to  authorize  the  fire  ^\  the  heavy  guns,  which  would 
have  laid  Chatham  in  the  dust.  With  a  sad  smile,  General  Lee 
refused  to  do  so,  and  taking  his  seat  on  the  trunk  of  an  old 
tree,  he  said.  "Major,  I  never  permit  the  unnecessary  effusion 
of  blood.  War  is  terrible  enough  at  best  to  a  Christian  man; 
1  hope  yet  to  see  you  and  your  dear  family  happy  in  your 
old  home.  Do  you  know  J  love  Chatham  better  than  any  place 
in  the  world  except  Arlington!  I  courted  and  won  my  dear 
wife  under  the  shade  of  those  trees." 

Space  does  not  permit  a  recital  of  the  accomplishments 
of  those  who  followed  Mr.  Fitzhugh,  of  Major  Churchill 
Jones,  of  William  Jones,  his  brother,  or  of  Judge  John  Coalter. 

The  Lacys  returned  to  Chatham  after  the  war  and  occu- 
pied it  until   1872. 

The  attractive  interior  with  its  hand-carved  panels  and 
corners  is  well  worthy  of  detailed  description,  particularly  the 
west  bedchamber,  with  its  alluring  old  fireplace  and  its  high 
mantel,  and  is  said  to  have  been  the  room  occupied  by  George 
and  Martha  Washington,  who  spent  a  day  or  two  here  during 
their  honeymoon.  Xot  .alone  have  distinguished  men  of  the 
Revolution  reposed  in  this  room,  but  John  Randolph  of  Roa- 
noke was  also  here,  and  later  General  Lee,  and  still  later  Presi- 
dent Lincoln  when  he  came  to  review  the  Lnion  Army.  Clara 
Bart  'ii,  to  whom  suffering  humanity  owes  such  a  debt  of  grati- 
tude, was  also  here,  a  day  or  so  previous  to  the  battle  of  Fred- 
ericksburg, and  Washington  Irving  and  other  notable  men 
visited  Major  Lacy  at  the  old  mansion  after  the  war. 

170 


The  Fall  Hill  Estate 


The  interesting  and  historic  old  estate,  Fall  Hill,  which 
is  now  the  attractive  home  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Fred  H.  Robinson, 
commands  a  view  surpassing  almost  any  near  Fredericksburg. 
The  house,  built  in  1738,  is  of  the  Georgian  type  of  architec- 
ture, and  its  white  panelling,  its  mantel  pieces,  and  other  deco- 
rations bear  the  impress  of  the  care  and  taste  with  which  the 
solid  old  brick  structure  was  planned.  In  close  proximity  to 
the  Falls  Plantation,  and  the  Falls  of  the  Rappahannock  river, 
this  homestead  well  sustains  its  reputation  as  having  had  an 
artistic  and  romantic  past,  which  is  inseparably  intertwined 
with  the  present.  , 

Situated  on  a  high  eminence  in  Spotsylvania  County, 
about  two  miles  from  Fredericksburg,  it  commands  an  entranc- 
ing view,  for  miles,  of  the  glistening  waters  of  the  river,  and 
the  hills  and  dales  of  the  Rappahannock  Valley,  with  its  smil- 
ing cornfields,  and  its  cheerful  apple  orchards,  and  of  the 
white  pillared  porches  of  Snowden,  the  charming  seat  ad- 
jacent. 

It  is  a  wonderful  panorama.  At  the  Falls  are  numberless 
moss-covered,  age-old  rocks,  over  which  the  waters  flash  and 
sparkle  in  the  sunlight,  fresh,  soft,  green,  masses  of  grassy 
sward  are  here,  dotted  with  the  stately  poplar,  sycamore,  and 
cedar  trees;  over  there  the  gnarled  old  oak  spreads  its  hoary 
branches,  and  honey  locusts  and  elms  are  near,  and  climbing 
honeysuckle  everywhere.  Under  the  cedar  tree,  hollowed  out 
of  the  flinty  bosom  of  the  big  boulder,  is  Francis  Thornton's 
punch-bowl,  with  "1720"  and  "F.  T."  engraved  on  the  circle. 
All  of  this  is  close  to  the  great  house  at  Snowden. 

Though  not  so  old,  the  home  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Frank  C. 
Baldwin  at  "Snoiwden,"  has  long  passed  the  century  mark, 
and  the  substantial  brick  structure,  with  its  massive  white 
pillared  portico,  its  wealth  of  English  ivy,  wistaria,  and  other 
shrubs,  its  magnificent  shade  trees,  planted  irregularly  on  the 
extensive  lawn,  its  flower  garden  on  the  west,  in  which  peonies, 
hollyhocks,  crepe  myrtle,  and  other  gay  perennials  vie  with 
each  other  in  glowing  color  and  beauty,  all  unite  to  form  a 
lovely  spot.     Nor  can  one  forget  that  here  General  Lee  and 


171 


Brompton"  and  "Mannsfield  Hall" 

his  staff,  and  citizens  of  Fredericksburg-,  sat  in  the  old  parlor 
twice  before  they  decided  that  though  the  Federals  carried 
out  their  threat  to  devastate  Fredericksburg,  they  would  not 
submit  to  an  unjust  demand,  and  for  the  only  time  in  the  war 
save  at  Appomatox  and  where  Jackson  died,  tears  gleamed  in 
General  Lee's  eyes  as  he  stepped  in  boots  and  gauntlets  from 
"Snowden's"  front  porch  to  mount  Traveler  on  the  driveway. 

The  old  Marye  home,  Brompton,  on  far-famed  Marye's 
Heights,  is  today  a  handsome  and  imposing  brick  structure, 
with  its  white  columned  portico,  and  its  impressive  and  entic- 
ing doorway,  so  suggestive  of  good  cheer  and  hospitality. 
Each  of  these  spots  will  appeal  to  all  who  see  them,  and  each 
will  bring  back  from  the  rich  past  a  memory  of  its  own 

Mannsfield  Hall,  a  beautiful  home  below  Fredericksburg, 
owned  by  Capt.  R.  Conroy  Vance  is  part  of  the  original  grant 
by  the  Virginia  Company  to  Major  Thomas  Lawrence  Smith 
in  1 67 1,  his  duty  under  the  grant  being  to  keep  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Massaponax  a  troop  of  150  sharpshooters  and  to  erect  a 
fort  as  protection  against  Indians.  For  this  he  was  granted 
land  two  miles  north  and  two  miles  south  of  the  Massaponax. 

The  estate  was  known  as  Smithfield  and  the  original 
house  was  of  stone  and  two  dwellings  still  standing  are  now 
being  used.  The  present  house  built  in  1805  was  added  to 
in  1906,  and  Smithfield  was  joined  to  Mannsfield,  one  of  the 
Page  family  estates.  Mann  Page  in  1749  built  the  beautiful 
old  mansion  of  stone  as  a  replica  of  the  home  of  his  second 
wife  Judith  Tayloe,  of  Mount  Airy,  in  Richmond  County.  This 
house  was  burned  at  the  close  of  the  Civil  War  by  accident,  by 
the  North  Carolina  soldiers  returning  In 'me. 

The  Mannsfield  Hall  estate  of  today  practically  marks 
the  right  and  left  of  the  contending  armies  during  the  battle 
of  Fredericksburg,  being  bounded  on  the  south  by  the  old  Mine 
Read  to  Hamilton's  Crossing  which  is  on  the  property.  It 
was  at  Mannsfield  that  the  great  Virginia  juri>t.  Judge  Brooke 
was  born,  the  property  being  owned  by  that  family  until  sold 
in  1805  to  the  Pratts. 

172 


■7. 


Church  and  School 

Hoiv  They  Grew  in  the  New  World;  Pathways  to  the  Light. 

In  the  spring  of  1877,  during  the  rectorate  of  Reverend 
E.  C.  Murdaugh  at  St.  George's  Church,  questions  arose  as 
to  certain  forms  of  the  Episcopal  ritual.  Some  of  the  mem- 
bers of  the  congregation  approving  Dr.  Murdaugh' s  views, 
believed  them  to  be  in  perfect  accord  with  the  doctrines'  of  the 
church,  but  others  felt  that  the  introduction  of  these  debated 
minor  forms  was  an  innovation  and  tended  towards  a  High 
Church  ritual.  These  discussions  were  followed  by  the  resig- 
nation of  Dr.  Murdaugh,  and  his  followers  assembled  in  old 
Citizen's  Hall  on  the  7th  day  of  August,  1877,  and  steps  were 
there  taken  to  organize  Trinity  Church. 

Reverend  Dr.  Murdaugh  was  promptly  called  to  the  rec- 
torship of  the  new  church,  and  Reverend  Robert  J.  McBryde 
was  called  from  the  chaplaincy  of  the  University  of  Virginia, 
to  fill  the  vacancy  at  St.  George's.  With  the  kindly  good  fel- 
lowship, the  tact,  and  the  piety  characteristic  of  his  Scotch 
ancestry,  "he  lived  in  accord  with  men  of  all  persuasions" 
both  in  the  Mother  Church  and  the  youthful  Trinity. 

This  congregation  first  worshiped  in  the  unoc- 
cupied Methodist  Church  on  Hanover  Street,  but  on 
Christmas  Day,  1881,  they  assembled  in  their  own  attractive 
edifice,  which  had  just  been  completed  on  the  corner  of  Han- 
over and  Prince  Edward  Streets.  Through  the  efforts  of  the 
Reverend  J.  Green  Shackelford,  (who  succeeded  Dr.  Mur- 
daugh,) and  the  congregation,  the  debt  was  finally  paid,  and 
on  February  12,  1890,  the  church  was  consecrated  by  Rt. 
Reverend  Francis  M.  Whittle. 

One  of  the  prominent  characteristics  of  this  congregation 
has  ever  been  the  energy  and  perseverance  with  which  they 
grapple  discouraging  problems,  and  the  unfailing  and  stubborn 

173 


The  First  Baptist  Church 

optimism  of  its  women,  out  of  which  is  horn  that  success 
which  almost  invariably  crowns  their  oftentimes  unpromising 
efforts.  Reverend  John  F.  W.  Feild,  the  present  rector,  is  a 
young-  man  of  unusual  attainments,  and  under  his  able  leader- 
ship the  church  is  a  vigorous  organization.  A  handsome 
parish  house  has  been  built. 

The  Baptist  Church 

Very  little  credence  has  been  put  in  the  old  superstition 
that  an  inauspicious  beginning  implies  the  promise  of  a  good 
ending,  but  the  Baptist  Church  here  is  a  conspicuous  example 
of  the  truth  of  the  old  saying. 

In  1768  three  Baptist  zealots  were  imprisoned  here  on 
two  charges:  "for  preaching  the  gospel  contrary  to  law,"  and, 
to  use  the  words  of  the  attorney  bringing  the  second  charge, 
"May  it  please  your  worships,  these  men  cannot  meet  a  man 
upon  the  road,  but  they  must  ram  a  text  of  scripture  down 
his  throat."  But  this  intrepid  trio  continued  to  preach  their 
doctrine,  and  to  sing  their  hymns  from  the  grated  doors  and 
windows  of  their  prison  cells,  and  each  day  drew  crowds  of 
awed  and  interested  listeners. 

To  the  Rev.  Andrew  Broaddus,  who  organized  the 
Church  here  in  1804,  to  Reverend  Thomas  S.  Dunaway,  whose 
pastorate  covered  a  period  of  thirty-two  years,  to  Reverend 
Emerson  L.  Swift,  the  present  efficient  pastor,  and  many  other 
able  and  faithful  men,  is  the  church  indebted  for  the  largest 
membership  in  church  and  Sunday  School  in  the  city,  the 
communion  roll  numbering  twelve  hundred  and  eighty-nine 
members,  and  eight  hundred  ami  twenty-eight  officers,  teach- 
ers, and  pupils  of  the  Sunday  School. 

The  present  large  and  splendidly  equipped  building  on 
the  corner  of  Princess  Anne  and  Amelia  Streets  was  erected 
in  1854,  under  the  pastorate  of  Reverend  William  F.  Broad- 
dus. and  has  had  frequent  additions  as  the  increasing  activi- 
ties and  congregations  demanded.  Dr.  Broaddus  conducted 
a  successful  school  for  young  women  in  the  basement  of  his 
church  for  several  vears  preceding  the  War  between  the  States. 

174 


The  Presbyterian  Church 

The  Presbyterian  Church 

To  the  Presbyterians  belongs  the  distinction  of  having 
the  oldest  house  of  worship  in  the  town.  The  present  brick 
edifice  on  George  Street  was  erected  in  1833,  the  ground 
having  been  donated  by  Mrs.  Robert  Patton,  the  daughter  of 
General  Hugh  Mercer.  At  the  time  of  the  coming  of  Reverend 
Samuel  B.  Wilson,  as  a  domestic  missionary  in  1806,  there 
were  two  Presbyterians  in  the  town  —  surely  an  unpromising 
outlook. 

This  was  about  the  time  of  the  critical  period  in  the  life 
of  the  Episcopal  Church  in  Virginia.  For  various  reasons 
many  of  St.  George's  congregation  had  become  dissatisfied. 
This  fact  strengthened  by  the  forceful  intellectuality,  and  the 
magnetic  sympathy  of  Dr.  Wilson,  brought  about  the  subse- 
quent rapid  growth  of  Presbyterianism,  and  proved  that  the 
psychological  moment  had  arrived  for  its  development  here. 
In  1 810  their  first  house  of  worship  was  built  on  the  corner 
of  Amelia  and  Charles  Streets. 

Adjacent  to  the  present  church  on  Princess  Ann  Street 
is  the  beautiful  chapel,  built  of  Spotsylvania  granite,  through 
the  donation  of  the  late  Mr.  Seth  B.  French  of  New  York,  in 
memory  of  a  much  loved  daughter. 

Dr.  Wilson  resigned  his  pastorate  in  1841,  and  among 
the  names  of  his  efficient  successors  are  Rev.  A.  A.  Hodge, 
D.  D.,  Rev.  Thomas  Walker  Gilmer,  Rev.  James  Power 
Smith,  and  the  present  much  loved  pastor,  Rev.  Robert  C. 
Gilmore. 

Dr.  Wilson  organized  the  female  school  which  was  taught 
for  years  by  him  at  his  residence  on  Charles  and  Lewis  Streets, 
the  former  home  of  Mary  Ball  Washington.  One  of  his 
teachers,  Miss  Mary  Ralls,  continued  this  school  with  great 
success,  and  admitted  boys.  How  interesting  would  be  the 
register  of  this  old  school,  if  it  were  available  today!  The 
older  residents  of  the  town  remember  well,  and  with  pleasure, 
some  of  the  men  who  were  educated,  there,  and  won  distinc- 
tion in  their  chosen  fields.     Among  others  are  Judge  William 

175 


The  Methodist  Church 

S.  Barton,  John  A.  Elder.  Judge  Peter  Gray,  of  Texas,  Dr. 
Howard  Barton,  of  Lexington,  Dr.  Robert  Welford,  Lieuten- 
ant-Governor John  L.  Marye,  Byrd  Stevenson,  attorney,  and 
the  Virginian  historian,  Robert  R.  Howison,  LL.  D. 

Dr.  Francis  A.  March,  the  renowned  philologist,  and  for 
years  president  of  Lafayette  College,  taught  school  here  for 
several  years,  assisting  Reverend  George  W.  McPhail,  the 
Presbyterian  minister  who  succeeded  Dr.  Wilson.  Dr.  March 
married  Miss  Mildred  Conway,  one  of  his  pupils,  and  General 
Peyton  Conway  March,  so  well  known  in  military  circles,  is  a 
son  of  his,  and  is  claimed  by  Fredericksburg,  though  he  was 
not  born  here. 

The  Methodist  Church 

Shortly  after  the  Revolution,  the  Methodists  began  to 
hold  services  here.  It  is  thought  that  for  some  years  they  had 
their  meetings  at  private  residences,  as  there  is  no  record  of 
a  house  of  worship  until  1822,  when  a  church  was  erected  on 
George  Street,  in  the  rear  of  where  Murkamp  Park  now  is. 
Reverend  "Father"  Kobler  began  his  ministry  here  in  1789, 
and  continued  for  more  than  half  a  century.  Tie  died  in  1843, 
and  his  ashes,  with  those  of  his  wife,  repose  today  beneath  the 
pulpit  of  the  present  church.  As  a  result  of  his  godliness  and 
assiduity,  combined  with  the  fervor  and  zeal  characteristic  oi 
that  communion,  the  Methodists,  under  the  leadership  of  faith- 
ful men,  have  enjoyed  a  successive  series  of  prosperous  years, 
materially  and  spiritually,  culminating  today  in  a  handsome, 
modern  brick  edifice  on  Hanover  Street,  well  equipped  for 
its  many  activities,  and  a  large  membership  both  in  Church 
and  Sunday  School.  Reverend  II.  I..  I  lout,  the  present  pastor, 
is  a  conscientious,  capable,  and  intelligent  leader. 

Roman"  Catholic 

Cntii  a  sermon  of  unusual  ability  and  power  was  deliv- 
ered here  in   1856,  by  Bishop  McGill.  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
faith,    that    denomination    had   no   organization    of   any   kind. 
Phi-  event,  together  with  the  energy  and  enthusiasm  of  the 

176 


Catholic  and  Campbellite 

small  band  of  disciples  of  that  faith,  was  the  impetus  which 
forwarded  the  establishment  of  the  church  here  in  1859.  The 
visits  of  Bishop  Gibbons  —  the  late  Cardinal  —  and  Bishop 
Keene  greatly  strengthened  the  prospects  of  the  church,  and 
though  its  membership  roll  is  not  a  long  one,  it  embraces' 
today  some  of  our  solid  and  successful  citizens.  They  have 
erected  a  neat  brick  church,  and  comfortable  parsonage  adja- 
cent on  Princess  Anne  Street.  The  priests  who  have  officiated 
have  been  men  deserving  the  high  esteem  of  the  community, 
and  well  able  to  carry  on;  the  genial  Father  Thomas  B.  Martin 
is  the  present  priest  in  charge. 

The  Campbellite  Church 

An  inconspicuous  red  brick  building  on  Main  Street  which 
lias  the  undeniable  stamp  of  age,  though  decorated  with  a  new 
and  modern  front,  is  the  Christian,  or  Campbellite  Church, 
built  in  1834.  This  was  only  two  years  after  Alexander 
Campbell,  the  eloquent  founder  of  the  sect,  came  here  to  ex- 
pound his  creed,  and  to  organize  his  church.  Its  little  band 
of  workers  has  passed  through  many  stages  of  discourage- 
ment, but  with  fortitude  and  energy  they  have  again  and  again 
revivified  the  spark  of  life,  which  at  times  seemed  to  burn  so 
low.  The  building  was  used,  during  the  War  between  the 
States,  as  a  hospital.  Under  the  leadership  of  Reverend  Lan- 
don  Cutler,  Reverend  Cephas  Shelburne,  Reverend  Samuel  H. 
Forrer,  and  others,  with  the  labors  of  the  present  pastor, 
Reverend  Daniel  E.  Motley,  the  membership  has  of  late  been 
greatly  increased.  The  Bible  used  by  Alexander  Campbell  on 
some  of  his  visits  here,  is  a  highly  esteemed  relic. 

Some  Schools  of  Fredericksburg 

The  Public  School  system  was  established  here  as  early 
as  1870.  At  first  the  schools  were  not  well  patronized,  owing 
in  part  to  the  unusual  and  well-merited  success  of  the  private 
schools,  and  old-time  prejudice  against  new  methods,  then 
termed  "socialistic."  Their  popularity  increased  with  their 
efficiency,  prejudice  was  entirely  eliminated,   and  to-day  we 

177 


The  State  Xormal  School 

have  a  splendid  brick  building  on  Main  and  Lewis  Streets, 
which  houses  the  elementary  grades,  well-equipped  and  with 
a  commodious  auditorium. 

The  handsome  high  school  building  on  Liberty  street  has 
been  completed  within  the  past  year.  It  cost  125,000  and  is  a 
credit  to  the  town.  The  chief  problem  here  is  the  lack  of  room 
to  accommodate  the  unexpectedly  increasing  number  of  lads 
and  lasses  who  present  themselves  on  the  opening  September 
morn.  More  than  several  times  have  the  efficient  and  pains- 
taking principal  and  teachers  congratulated  themselves  on 
acquiring  adequate  conditions  for  placing  the  pupils,  when  in 
an  incredibly  short  time,  "congestion,"  and  "half-day  ses- 
sions," are  again  topics  in  school  circles. 

The  State  Normal 

The  crowning  glory  of  Fredericksburg  in  the  educational 
line  and  probably  the  most  far-reaching  in  its  benefits  and 
results  is  the  State  Normal  School,  established  here  by  Act  of 
the  Virginia  legislature  in  1908,  State  Senator  C.  O'Conner 
Goolrick  being  most  active  in  securing  its  location  here.  The 
massive  buildings  crown  the  apex  of  one  of  the  most  pic- 
turesque slopes  on  the  left  of  the  far-famed  Marye's  Ileights. 
An  institution  of  this  caliber,  in  order  to  radiate  the  best  in 
every  line  of  its  many  activities,  must  be  apart  from  the  busi- 
ness, social,  and  commercial  life  of  the  community,  and  yet 
near  enough  t<>  benefit  from  the  many  obvious  advantages  its 
proximity  to  such  a  center  affords.  Ahe  Normal  School  fully 
meets  this  condition.  The  drive  ot  about  a  mile  from  the 
center  of  the  town  is  an  interesting  one,  and,  when  the  summit 
of  the  hill  is  reached,  the  driveway  circles  around  the  imposing 
brick  structures;  the  Administration  Building,  Frances  Willard 
Hall.  Virginia  Hall,  Monroe  Hall,  and  others.  To  the  east, 
in  all  its  historic  pride  lies  the  ancient  city.  To  the  west, 
beyond  the  carefully  kept,  and  attractive  campus,  and  over 
the  Athletic  Field,  nothing  is  visible  but  fields  and  forests  and 
rolling   hills, — nature's   handiwork, — and.    as   the   eye   sweeps 

178 


•  '..       '    '".'    . 


Xeak  Bloody  Axclk 

Monument  ,il    the  Spot    11' here  (Jenerul  Sed(/:eiek,   of  Conneelieut,    li 

Killed  by  ,i   ( 'onfedenite  Sharpshooter 


Schools  of  Old  Times 

the  horizon,  it  is  arrested  by  more  hills  and  dales  of  that 
region  of  our  state  named  in  honor  of  that  daring  and  pic- 
turesque character,  "The  Knight  of  the  Golden  Horseshoe." 
Under  President  A.  B.  Chandler,  Jr.,  and  a  faculty  of 
teachers  chosen  to  provide  that  type  of  instruction  calculated 
to  prepare  young  women  for  successful  vocations,  the  school 
is  a  success. 

Schools  of  Old 

If  justice  were  done  to  each  of  the  excellent  schools  of 
varying  characteristics,  in  the  old  days  of  Fredericksburg, 
many  times  the  space  allotted  to  this  subject  would  be  in- 
fringed upon.  But  at  the  risk  of  this  infringement,  the  names 
of  some  of  the  local  educators  of  other  days  must  be  included. 
Mr.  Thomas  H.  Hanson  was  sometime  Master  of  the  Fred- 
ericksburg Academy,  that  old  school  which  is  said  to  have 
begun  its  existence  on  Gunnery  Green,  which  in  its  early  days 
disseminated  the  seeds  of  learning  to  many  youths,  who  after- 
wards became  distinguished  statesman.  Messrs.  Powell  and 
Morrison  were  principals  of  a  girl's  school  in  old  Citizens 
Hall;  Mr.  John  Goolrick  and  son  George  educated  some  of 
our  most  influential  citizens  of  the  past  generation ;  Judge 
Richard  H.  Coleman  taught  a  school  for  boys  at  Kenmore, 
and  also  at  Hazel  Hill ;  Mrs.  John  Peyton  Little  conducted  a 
popular  school  for  girls  at  her  residence,  the  old  Union  House 
i  >n  Main  Street ;  Colonel  W.  Winston  Fontaine  had  a  large 
school  for  girls,  and  at  a  later  period  Miss  Frank  Chinn,  Miss 
Tillie  Slaughter,  and  others,  and  still  later  Miss  Willie 
Schooler  (Mrs.  Frank  Page)  conducted  elementary  schools, 
which  by  reason  of  their  efficiency  gained  great  popularity. 
The  school  of  the  late  Charles  Wisner  was  largely  attended  by 
both  sexes. 

Fredericksburg  College 

The  interesting  building  (now  the  home  of  Mr.  W.  E. 
Lang,  Smithsonia,  has  almost  since  its  construction  been 
closely  associated  with  the  religious  or  educational  life  of  the 

179 


Colored  Institutions 


community.  In  it  for  years  was  conducted  successfully,  under 
various  teachers,  a  school  for  young"  ladies,  always  under  Pres- 
byterian management.  For  years  it  housed  some  of  the 
departments  oi  the  Presbyterian  Home  and  School,  of  which 
that  popular  and  efficient  institution,  familiarly  known  as  The 
Fredericksburg  College  was  a  part. 

Founded  in  1893  by  Reverend  A.  P.  Saunders,  D.  D., 
the  beneficial  activities  of  this  institution  continued  until  1915. 
Xot  only  were  the  widow-;  and  orphans  of  Presbyterian  min- 
isters the  beneficiaries  in  many  ways,  but  it  afforded  unusually 
fine  opportunities  to  the  youth  of  the  town,  and  surrounding 
country,  not  only  in  the  usual  college  courses,  but  in  its  school 
oi  music  and  ait  as  well.  In  many  instances  its  graduates 
have  distinguished  themselves  at  the  University  of  Virginia, 
Johns  Hopkins,  and  elsewhere. 

Colored  Institutions 

The  colored  citizens  of  the  town  —  and  the  phrase  is 
synonymous  with  law-abiding,  respectful  and  inteligent  citi- 
zens— have  shown  commendable  energy  and  interest  in  their 
churches  and  schools,  as  is  manifested  in  the  substantial 
buildings  housing  their  religious  and  educational  activities. 
Three  churches,  all  of  the  Baptist  denomination,  each  with  its 
own  pastor,  hold  services  regularly.  Each  has  a  large  con- 
gregation and  a  flourishing  Sunday  School.  Though  the 
equipment  of  both  high  and  graded  schools  is  only  fair,  the 
corps  of  teachers,  all  of  their  own  race,  is  as  efficient  as  any- 
where in  the  State. 

"Shiloh  Old  Site"  and  "Shiloh  Xew  Site"  are  the  leading 
colored  churches,  and  each  of  these  ha-  been  steadily  growing 
for  years. 


180 


The  Church  of  England 

First  in  Virginia,  the  Church  of  England  Has  the  Longest  History. 

It  has  been  said,  and  by  reliable  searchers  after  historical 
truths,  that  the  first  Christian  shrine  in  America  was  built 
by  Spanish  missionaries,  and  on  the  site  where  now 
stands  the  City  of  Fredericksburg-.  But  as  no  proof  has  been 
found,  we  relinquish  this  claim,  and  find  our  first  authentic 
beginnings  of  Christianity  in  an  old  entry  found  in  the  records 
of  Spotsylvania  County,  1724:  Information  brought  by 
Thomas  Chew,  Church  warden,  against  John  Diggs  for  absent- 
ing himself  from  the  place  of  divine  worship;  he  is  fined  ten 
shillings,  or  one  hundred  pounds  of  tobacco,  or  must  receive 
corporal  punishment  in  lieu  thereof,  as  the  law  directs."  These 
were  days  in  the  infant  colony  when  religious  freedom  had 
no  place.  Legislation  was  paramount  and,  though  never  since 
those  times  has  the  need  of  the  gospel  been  so  obvious,  the 
people  had  to  accept  the  Minister  that  "His  Honorable,  the 
Governor,*'  sent  them. 

St.  George's  parish  and  the  early  history  of  Fredericks- 
burg are  inseparably  linked.  Affairs  of  Church  and  affairs  of 
State  were  embodied  in  one  system. 

In  the  main  the  character  and  manner  of  living  of  the 
early  ministers  of  the  Church  of  England  here  were  not  in 
accord  with  the  dignity  of  their  mission.  Incidents  so  indi- 
cating were  not  at  all  unusual :  on  one  occasion  a  clergyman  of 
gigantic  size  and  strength  had  a  rough  and  tumble  fight  with 
members  of  his  vestry,  in  which  the  laymen  were  knocked  out. 
The  burly  Englishman  took  as  his  text  the  following  Sunday, 
"xA.nd  I  contended  with  them,  and  cursed  them,  and  smote 
certain  of  them,  and  plucked  off  their  hair."  Bishop  Meade 
says,  "Surely  God  must  have  greatly  loved  this  branch  of  his 
Holy  Catholic  Church,  or  he  would  not  have  borne  so  long 
with   her  unfaithfulness,   and   so   readily   forgiven   her   sins." 

181 


Some  of  the  Early  Rectors 

P>ut  happily,  all  those  who  in  the  olden  days  ministered  in  the 
Parish  of  St.  George  were  not  of  this  type. 

St.  George's  Parish  and  the  County  of  Spotsylvania  were 
contemporaneously  established  in  1720.  The  first  official 
record  of  the  parish  extant  is  the  notice  of  the  vestry  meeting 
on  January  16,  1726,  at  Mattaponi,  one  of  the  three  churches 
then  in  the  parish.  Reverend  Theodosius  Staige,  minister. 
Reverend  Rodman  Kennor  succeeded  Mr.  Staige.  It  was  not 
until  the  10th  of  April,  1732,  that  Colonel  Henry  Willis  con- 
tracted to  build  a  church  on  the  site  of  the  present  St.  George's, 
seventy-five  thousand  pounds  of  tobacco  being  the  considera- 
tion. After  much  discussion  accompanied  by  usual  excitement, 
the  State  urging  its  claims  and  the  vestry  not  indifferent  as 
to  who  "His  Honorable,  the  Governor,"  would  send  them, 
the  Reverend  Patrick  Henry,  uncle  of  the  famous  Patrick- 
Henry,  became  minister.  Colonel  Henry  Willis  and  Colonel 
John  Waller,  "or  he  that  first  goes  to  Williamsburgh"  is 
desired  to  return  thanks  to  His  Honor. 

Reverend  Patrick  Henry  resigned  his  charge  in  1734, 
and  Sir  William  Gooch,  Governor,  sent  a  Mr.  Smith,  who, 
on  account  of  his  "faithfulness  or  the  contrary,"  was 
very  generally  disliked,  and  after  two  sermons,  left.  The 
names  of  two  ministers,  father  and  son,  appear  successively 
on  the  interesting  old  yellow  rolls  at  this  time,  Reverend  James 
Marye,  Sr.,  and  Reverend  James  Marye,  Jr.  who  officiated  at 
St.  George's  for  almost  half  a  century,  and  who  were  faithful 
and  zealous.  The  salary  of  these  men  was  fixed  by  law  at 
sixteen  thousand  pounds  of  tobacco.  It  is  impossible  to  com- 
pute with  accuracy  this  equivalent  in  English  money,  "minis- 
ter's tobacco"  representing  many  varieties,  and  its  value  seem- 
ing to  fluctuate.  In  general  four  pounds  of  tobacco  equaled 
one  shilling.  The  elder  Marye  married  Letitia  Mary  Ann 
Staige,  the  sister  of  the  first  rector;  and  Yveamans  Smith,  who 
built  the  attractive  country  seat  "Snowden"  in  1806,  married 
Ann  Osborne,  a  daughter  of  James  Marye,  Jr.  From  these 
families  are  lineally  descended  many  of  the  worshipers  at  old 
St.  George'^  today. 

182 


The  Oldest  Cemetery  Here 

In  175 1  the  first  bell,  the  gift  of  John  Spotswood,  was 
used.  In  1755  the  legislature  passed  an  act  directing  that 
each  parish  should  provide  for  the  maintenance  of  the  poor, 
thus  the  first  "poor-house"  was  established.  In  1722  an  act 
was  passed  by  the  General  Assembly  relating  to  the  church- 
yard, and  authorizing  the  vestry  to  reduce  the  dimensions 
thereof.  This  small  and  interesting  spot,  so  carefully  main- 
tained today,  was  used  as  "God's  Acre,"  before  the  legal  estab- 
lishment of  Fredericksburg  in  1727.  Contiguous  to  the  church 
on  the  north,  this  little  "City  of  the  dead,"  is  a  grassy  hillside, 
sloping  gently  to  the  east ;  and  amid  the  sturdy  elms  and 
maples,  the  graceful  fronds  and  purple  blossoms  of  the  wis- 
taria and  lilac,  the  old  fashioned  roses,  the  clinging  ivy  and 
periwinkle,  rest  the  ashes  of  those  who  helped  to  make  the 
Fredericksburg  of  long,  long  ago.  We  love  to  think  of  those 
noted  personages  sleeping  there,  that 

"It  is  not  hard  to  be  a  part  of  the  garden's  pageantry 
When  the  heart  climbs  too,  set  free." 

Colonel  Fielding  Lewis,  of  Kenmore,  and  his  three  infant 
grandchildren,  sleep  beneath  the  old  stone  steps  of  the  church. 
William  Paul,  the  brother  of  John  Paul  Jones,  is  under  the 
linden  tree.  Archibald  McPherson,  the  generous  Scotchman 
and  friend  of  the  poor,  sleeps  under  a  tangle  of  ivy  and  roses. 
Reverend  E.  C.  McGuire  and  his  relict,  Judith  Lewis,  great 
niece  of  General  Washington  lie  close  to  the  loved'  old 
church  beneath  the  weeping  willow.  Under  the  shade 
of  the  same  beautiful  tree,  sleeps  the  father  of  Martha 
Washington,  Colonel  John  Dandridge  of  New  Kent  County. 
Others,  well  known,  are  not   far  away. 

Reverend  James  Marye,  Jr.,  a  faithful  scion  of  the  Hu- 
guenot faith,  taught  a  parochial  school  here,  which  George 
Washington  as  a  youth  attended.  It  is  thought  to  have  been 
at  this  school  that  he  wrote,  under  Mr.  Marye's  dictation,  his 
celebrated  "Rules  of  Civility  and  Decent  Behavior,"  the  origi- 
nal of  which  is  preserved  among  the  country's  archives.     The 

183 


Washington's  Last  Attendance 

faithful  service  of  Reverend  James  Marye.  Jr.,  ended  with  his 
death  on  October  i,  1780,  and  (luring  seven  years  following 
the  parish  was  without  a  minister. 

In  1785  agreeably  to  the  law  passed  in  the  legislature 
giving  all  Chrisitan  denominations  the  privilege  of  incorpora- 
tion, the  people  of  St.  George's  Church  met,  and  elected  the 
following  vestrymen  :  John  Chew,  John  Steward,  Mann  Page, 
Thomas  Colson.  Thomas  Crutcher,  Daniel  Branham,  Thomas 
Sharp  and  James  Lewis. 

In  1787  Reverend  Thomas  Thornton  was  unanimously 
elected  rector  of  the  church.  Steady  faith,  unaffected  piety, 
ability  to  associate  the  dignity  of  the  minister  with  the  famil- 
iarity of  the  man.  are  some  of  the  characteristics  which  his 
biographers  have  attributed  to  him,  and  which  made  him 
acceptable  to  all  classes.  It  was  during  his  ministrations  that 
the  Fredericksburg  Academy  was  held  in  such  high  estima- 
tion.    Many  eminent  men  have  attended  this  old  school. 

Four  pews  in  the  gallery  of  St.  George's  were  reserved 
for  the  use  of  the  professors  and  students.  An  interesting 
incident  which  occurred  at  this  time  is  told  by  Judge  John  T. 
Lomax,  then  a  small  boy.  An  addition  to  the  galleries  had 
just  been  completed,  when  George  Washington,  with  freshly 
won  honors,  came  on  what  proved  to  be  his  last  visit  to  his 
mother,  and  as  usual  attended  service  at  St  George's  Church. 
Because  of  the  presence  of  the  hero,  a  great  crowd  gathered. 
Suddenlv,  during  the  service,  there  was  heard  from  the  gal- 
leries the  sound  of  creaking  timber-:  this  proved  to  be  only 
the  settling  of  the  new  rafter-,  which  had  not  been  well  ad- 
justed, but  which  caused  great  fear  and  excitement  in  the  con- 
gregate >n. 

After  the  resignation  of  Mr.  Thornton  in  17^-',  the  fol- 
lowing names  appear  on  the  church  rolls,  and  follow  each 
other  in  quick  succession:  Reverend  John  Woodville,  James 
Stevenson,  Abner  Waugh,  Samuel  Row  and  George  Strebeck. 
During  the  ministrv  of  Reverend  James  Stevenson  two  insti- 
tutions of  learning  were  e>tablished.   and   the  benefit  and  ad- 

184 


The  Female  Charity  School 

vantages  derived  therefrom  are  felt  to  this  day.  The  male 
Charity  School  had  its  beginnings  in  1795,  with  these  gentle- 
men as  subscribers :  Benjamin  Day,  Charles  Yates,  Elisha 
Hall,  William  Lovell,  Fontaine  Maury,  George  French  and 
Daniel  Henderson. 

Though  this  school  ceased  to  exist  years  ago,  there  are 
still  three  stone  tablets  inset  in  the  wall  of  the  old  building  on 
Hanover  Street,  where  the  sessions  of  this  school  were  held- 
(This  building  has  been  rejuvenated  lately,  and  is  now  the 
home  of  the  Christian  Science  Society.)  These  tablets  are 
in  memory  of  three  of  Fredericksburg's  philanthropists, 
Archibald  McPherson,  who  died  in  1754,  bequeathing  his 
property  to  the  poor  of  the  town,  Benjamin  Day  and  Thomas 
Colson,  whose  services  to  the  school  were  many  and  valuable 
and  whose  charity  was  broad. 

The  Female  Charity  School  was  established  in  1S02,  by 
the  women  of  St.  George's  parish,  generously  assisted  finan- 
cially by  Miss  Sophia  Carter,  of  Prince  William  County,  and 
is  still  maintained  to  this  day;  their  present  substantial  brick 
building  on  upper  Main  Street  has  been  occupied  since  1836 
and  houses  at  the  present  time  eight  happy  little  maidens 
who,  with  their  predecessors  numbering  into  many  hundreds, 
would  probably,  without  its  gracious  influence  have  grown 
into  womanhood  without  a  spark  of  that  light  attained  by 
education  and  religious  influence. 

But  notwithstanding  these  blessings  times  grew  sad  for 
the  Church  of  England  in  Virginia.  The  Revolution  in  which 
each  was  involved  was  destructive  to  the  upbuilding  of  the 
Church  and  the  growth  of  Virginia.  The  results  of  that  war 
were  many  and  far  reaching-.  The  church  had  been  closely 
associated  with  that  tyrannical  government  which  the  people 
had  now  thrown  off.  Its  liturgy,  its  constitution,  its  ministry 
and  members  were  naturally  subjects  of  criticism,  prejudice 
and  abuse.  Having  had  the  strong  right  arm  of  a  strong 
government  for  protection,  it  was  now  forced  to  stand  alone, 
and  it  seemed  for  a  while  to  totter,  and  almost  to  fall. 

i85 


Xezu  Edifice  Consecrated 


Such  were  the  conditions  under  which  Reverend  Edward 
C.  McGuire  took  charge  of  St.  George's  Church  in  1813.  In 
writing  of  his  reception  here  he  says,  "I  was  received  with  very 
little  cordiality,  in  consequence  I  suppose  of  the  shameful  con- 
duct of  several  ministers  who  preceded  me  in  this  place.  .  .  . 
Under  these  disastrous  circumstances,  I  commenced  a  career 
most  unpromising  in  the  estimation  of  men.'' 

Nevertheless,  this  inexperienced  young  man  of  thirty 
years  proved  that  by  living  himself  the  gospel  of  truth  and 
love  and  preaching  "simplicity  and  godly  sincerity,"  he  could 
overcome  those  difficulties  implied  in  the  hopeless  condition 
which  prevailed  at  the  outset  of  his  ministry,  when,  we  are 
told,  there  were  only  eight  or  ten  communicants  of  the  church. 
But  his  long  ministry  of  forty-five  years  was  one  of  prosperity 
and  blessing. 

In  1816  the  second  church  on  the  same  site  and  this  time 
a  brick  edifice,  was  consecrated  and  Bishop  Moore  confirmed 
a  class  of  sixty  persons.  Reverend  Philip  Slaughter  says  in 
his  history  of  St.  George's  Parish,  published  in  1847.  "There 
is  apparently  but  one  thing  wanting  to  the  outward  prosperity 

of  this  congregation  and  that  is,  room  for  its  growth 

I  trtist  that  the  parishioners  will  build  such  a  house  for  God. 

.  .  .  .  as  will  be  a  fit  monument  for  their  thankfulness 

a  suitable  reward  to  their  venerable  pastor  for  his  life-long 
devotion  to  their  service."  lli-  hope  materialized,  for  in  the 
fall  of  1849  the  present  beautiful  edifice  was  completed.  A 
few  years  after  the  completion  of  this  building,  July  9,  1854, 
a  fire  occurred,  and  the  church  was  damaged.  The  loss  was 
covered  by  insurance,  and  the  building  quicklv  restored  to  it- 
former  beauty.  There  is  an  authenticated  story  told  in  con- 
nection with  this  fire:  the  day  succeeding  the  fire  there  was 
found,  on  the  Chatham  bridge,  the  charred  and  blackened 
remnant  of  a  leaf  from  an  old  Bible  and  .almost  the  only  words 
legible  was  the  significant  verse  from  Isaiah,  Our  holy  and 
our  beautiful  house,  where  our  fathers  praised  Thee,  is  burned 
up  with  fire  and  all  our  pleasant  things  are  laid  waste. 


186 


Some  Notable   Vestrymen 

Shortly  before  the  death  of  Dr.  McGuire,  in  1858,  the 
climax  of  his  ministry  was  realized  in  the  class  of  eighty- 
eight  souls,  which  he  presented  to  Bishop  Meade  for  confirma- 
tion. Reverend  Alfred  M.  Randolph,  afterwards  beloved 
Bishop  of  the  diocese,  succeeded  Dr.  McGuire,  and  in  chrono- 
logical order  came  Rev.  Magruder  Maury,  Rev.  Edmund  C. 
Murdaugh,  D.  D.,  Rev.  Robert  J.  McBryde,  Rev.  J.  K.  Mason, 
Rev.  William  M.  Clarke,  Rev.  William  D.  Smith,  Rev.  Robert 
J.  McBryde,  D.  D.,  the  second  time,  and  Rev.  John  J.  Lanier, 
scholar  and  author,  who  is  the  present  rector. 

These  men  were  all  more  or  less  gifted  with  a  high 
degree  of  mentality  and  spirituality.  Of  a  later  and  another 
day  they  were  potent  agents  in  diffusing  the  blessed  light 
which  must  emanate  from  the  church. 

For  nearly  two  centuries  St.  George's  Church,  its  three 
edifices  each  more  costly  and  imposing  than  its  predecessor, 
has  commanded  the  summit  of  the  hill  at  Princess  Anne  and 
George  Streets.  Its  interesting  tablets  and  beautiful  windows 
tell  in  part,  the  story  of  its  engaging  past. 

In  glancing  over  that  precious  manuscript,  the  old  parish 
vestry  book,  which  numbers  its  birthdays  by  hundreds  of 
years,  names  familiar  to  every  student  of  American  history  are 
noted.  Colonel  Fielding  Lewis  is  there  and  General  Hugh 
Mercer,  General  George  Weedon,  and  Colonel  Charles  Wash- 
ington, also  Dr.  Charles  Mortimer,  the  physician  of  Mary 
Washington.  Others  dear  to  the  hearts  of  old  Fredericks- 
burgers  are  Reuben  T.  Thorn,  who  held  the  unusual  record 
of  serving  the  vestry  for  a  successive  period  of  fifty-two  years; 
Zachary  Lewis,  attorney  to  his  majesty,  the  King  of  England; 
Lewis  Willis,  grandfather  of  Catherine,  Princess  Murat ; 
Captain  John  Herndon,  Francis  Thornton,  Ambrose  Grayson, 
Francis  Talliaferro,  Robert  Beverly;  but  for  the  fact  that 
there  is  such  a  vast  assemblage  of  names,  interesting  to  the 
generation  of  today,  an  entertaining  recital  of  them  in  this 
brief  sketch,  would  be  possible. 


187 


The  250th  Birthday 

Fredericksburg  Celebrates  an  Anniversary 

Many  months  were  given  to  preparation  for  this  greatest 
event  in  the  modern  history  of  Fredericksburg,  the  celebration 
of  her  250th  birthday  as  a  chartered  community.  Much 
thought  was  spent  on  how  best  to  portray  the  Town's  history 
from  the  granting  of  the  "Lease  Lands"  by  Governor  Berkley, 
in  May,  1O71,  to  be  settled  by  the  Colonists. 

The  entire  city  officially  and  individually  had  given  itself 
up,  practically,  to  staging  a  Celebration  befitting  the  unique 
occasion.  All  the  hard  working  committees  declared  things 
ready  for  the  Morning  of  the  25th  of  May,  when  the  cere- 
monies of  the  day  would  begin  at  nine  o'clock  with  an  official 
reception  to  delegates  with  credentials,  and  special  guests  of 
the  city,  at  the  Court  House.  Doubtful  ones  had  not  lacked 
prediction  of  failure,  and  they  were  confirmed  in  their  fears 
when  the  early  morning  began  with  a  thunder  storm  and  down 
pour.  The  stout  hearted  and  faithful  who  had  carried  on  the 
work  were,  however,  at  their  posts  of  duty,  and  gladly  saw 
the  sun  break  through  just  in  time  for  the  opening  festivities. 
The  entire  city  was  elaborately  decorated,  flags  flying  and 
'"the  colors"  displayed  in  bunting  on  every  home  and  building. 
A  program,  replete  with  events,  half  solemn,  gay  or  merry, 
was  arranged  for  the  day,  of  which  every  moment  was  taken 
up.  Never  before  in  its  varied  history  did  such  an  air  of  gayety 
envelop  the  city.  Visitors  flocked  to  Fredericksburg  and  long 
before  the  beginning  thousands  had  gathered,  sidewalks,  steps 
and  porches  were  crowded  with  merry  throngs  in  carnival 
mood-  While  the  thousands  of  visitors  were  pouring  into  the 
town  by  railroad  and  by  highway  the  celebration  was  formally 
inaugurated  when  the  official  guests  appeared  at  the  court- 
house and  presented  Chairman  \V.  L.  Brannan  of  the  Celebra- 
tion Committee,  and  Mayor  J.  Garnett  King  their  credentials, 

188 


Real  Indians  In  War  Dance 

which  will  become  a  part  of  the  archives  of  the  town.     This 
formality  took  but  a  few  minutes. 

At  nine  thirty  A.  M.,  exercises  were  held  on  Lewis  Street 
to  mark  the  boundaries  of  the  Lease  Lands,  which  was  done 
under  the  auspices  of  the  A.  P.  V.  A.,  one  of  whose  members, 
Mrs.  V.  M.  Fleming,  had  in  searching  old  records,  come  across 
the  forgotten  document  of  the  Lease  Lands  and  worked  hard 
for  the  celebration.  A  granite  marker  was  unveiled  with  the 
following  ceremonies : 

Opening  prayer  —  Rev.  R.  C  Gilmore. 

Address  —  Dr.  J.  P.  Smith,  introduced  by  Dr.  Barney. 

Unveiling  —  by  Jacquelin   Smith,  a  descendant  of  Lawrence 

Smith,  first  Commander  of  the  town. 
Acceptance  —  Mayor  J.  Garnett  King. 
Benediction  —  Rev.  J.  J.  Lanier. 
These  exercises  were  very  impressive  and  largely  attended. 

Receptions,  addresses  by  distinguished  guests,  parades  of 
soldiers  and  marines,  veterans  of  three  wars  and  descendants 
of  Indians  were  all  on  the  program  which  followed  and  fasci- 
nated the  crowds  at  various  points.  In  front  of  the  Princess 
Anne  Hotel  was  presented  a  lively  scene,  with  one  of  the  bands 
of  marines  from  Quantico  playing  on  the  balcony  while 
throngs  of  gaily  dressed  women,  citizens,  officials  and  marine 
officers  made  up  a  remarkably  brilliant  ensemble. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  numbers  of  the  morning  pro- 
gram was  an  Indian  War  Dance,  in  costume,  by  members  of 
the  Rappahannock  tribe  of  Indians,  actual  descendants  of  the 
men  who  concluded  the  first  treaty  with  Capt.  John  Smith. 
This  was  in  the  City  Park  at  1 1  130  A.  M.  The  tribal  dances 
were  most  picturesque  and  were  in  keeping  with  the  birthday 
celebration.  A  concert  by  the  Marine  Band  followed  the 
exhibition  by  the  Indians.  The  other  principal  point  of  in- 
terest at  the  same  time  was  Washington  Avenue  where  the 
Fort  Myer  Cavalry  Troop  gave  an  exhibition  of  wonderful 
skill.      These   manoeuvers   were   magnificently    executed    and 

189 


The  Distinguished  Guests 

received  with  enthusiastic  applause  by  the  crowd.  The  Troops 
fell  in  line  at  the  whistle.  The  two  platoons  then  broke  from 
the  center  and  executed  column  right  and  left  respectively. 
The  first  platoon  executed  troopers  by  the  left  flank  and  the 
second  platoon  serpentined  in  and  out.  The  whole  troop 
spiraled  and  unwound  at  a  gallop,  then  executed  by  fours  by 
the  left  flank  center  and  rode  to  the  opposite  end  of  the  field. 

A  large  platform  at  the  north  end  of  Washington  Avenue 
held  the  speakers,  and  the  specially  invited  guests.  Among  the 
distinguished  guests  and  delegates  present  were  His  Excel- 
lency. Westmoreland  Davis,  his  staff  of  15  members,  Mrs. 
Davis,  Hon.  Herbert  L.  Bridgman,  member  of  the  New  York 
State  Board  of  Regents  and  author,  journalist  and  scientist, 
Hon.  Chas.  Beatty  Alexander,  vice-president  general  of  the 
Society  of  the  Cincinnati,  and  millionaire  philanthropist,  of 
Xew  York,  Gen.  Smedley  D.  Butler,  U.  S.  M.  C,  Quantico, 
Gen.  John  A.  Lejeune,  U.  S.  M.  C.,  Senator  Claude  A.  Swan- 
son,  Washington,  Col.  F.  Nash  Bilisoly,  State  Commissioner 
of  Fisheries;  Chief  George  Nelson,  Rappahannock  Indians; 
Chief  G.  N.  Cooke,  Pamunkies;  Chief  C.  Costello,  Mattaponi, 
Chief  O.  W.  Adkins,  Chickahominy.  John  Halsey,  represent- 
ing the  Sons  of  Revolution  of  New  Jersey;  Mrs.  Archibald  R. 
Harmon,  representative  of  the  city  of  Philadelphia;  Capt.  M. 
W.  Davis,  commander  of  cavalry  from  Fort  Myer;  Major 
Walter  Guest  Kellog,  Regent  of  the  State  of  New  York: 
Xewbold  Noyes,  associate  editor  and  part  owner  of  the  Wash- 
ington Star;  Major  General  Adelbert  Cronkite,  commander, 
80th  division  U.  S.  Army  and  others.  As  a  native  of  Fred- 
ericksburg a  warm  welcome  was  accorded  to  Admiral  Robert 
S.  Griffin,  who  has  won  fame  and  distinction  in  the  I"-  S. 
Navy  and  he  was  accompanied  by  his  son.  Commander  Griffin. 
Dr.  Kate  Waller  Barrett,  born  in  Stafford  County,  and  a 
woman  widely  known  for  her  activities  in  philanthropic  and 
social  work,  was  another  who  received  marked  attention. 

Mayor  J.  Garnett  King  was  the  official  host  of  the  city, 
and  so  well  were  his  arduous  duties  performed  that  no  one 
felt  neglected.     The  Chairman,  President  W.  L.  Brannan.  of 

190 


Mr.  C.  B.  Alexander's  Address 

the  Chamber  of  Commerce,  presided,  and  under  his  skillful 
direction  these  ceremonies  were  conducted  harmoniously  and 
impressively.  Mr.  Brannan  did  the  hardest  work  in  organizing 
the  Anniversary  Celebration  and  its  success  was  largely  due 
to  his  energies  and  efforts  and  efficiency. 

Following  the  cavalry  drill  about  11:15  A.  M.,  Hon. 
Chas.  Beatty  Alexander,  LL.  D.,  LITT.  D.,  vice-president 
general  of  the  Society  of  the  Cincinnati  and  a  Regent  of  the 
State  of  New  York,  was  introduced  by  Judge  John  T.  Gool- 
rick  and  made  the  following  address  of  which  we  quote  a  few 
words  : 

"When  I  was  about  ten  years  of  age  I  was  sent  with  my 
Aunt,  Janett  Alexander,  the  daughter  of  Archibald  Alex- 
ander, of  Rockbridge  County,  Virginia,  to  visit  at  Chatham, 
I  can  vividly  recall  the  generous  yet  well-ordered  life  which 
prevailed  at  that  time  under  the  benign  auspices  of  the  beauti- 
ful Mrs.  J.  Horace  Lacy,  with  her  noble  husband,  and  I  re- 
member the  huge  wood  fires  in  every  room  and  the  delicious 
Virginia  food.  Each  of  us  in  the  house,  I  remember,  was  fur- 
nished with  a  body  servant  who  was  charged  with  the  duty 
of  seeing  that  we  were  made  thoroughly  comfortable.  I  was 
shown  the  interesting  tree  under  which  it  was  said  that  Gen- 
eral Washington  and  General  Lee  both  proposed  to  their  future 
wives  and  I  am  interested  to  learn  that  the  Rev.  James  Power 
Smith,  A.  D.  C.  to  Stonewall  Jackson,  also  under  that  very 
tree  proposed  to  the  lovely  Agnes  Lacy,  the  daughter  of  the 
house. 

Every  night  the  family  and  guests  would  gather  around 
the  huge  log  fire  and  discuss  the  issues  of  the  day.  On  the  way 
South  I  had  been  taken  to  the  Senate  to  hear  Senator  Crit- 
tenton  present  his  famous  compromise.  I  also  had  the  pleasure 
of  spending  the  Christmas  day  of  1859  at  the  Seddons  house, 
at  Snowden,  about  eight  miles  from  here.  Their  home  was 
destroyed  later  by  order  of  General  Benj.  F.  Butler,  Mr. 
Seddon's  brother,  James  A.  Seddon,  being  Secretary  of  War 
of  the  Confederacy.  I  can  readily  recall  the  appearance  of 
the  streets  of  Fredericksburg." 

191 


Banquets  and  Luncheons 

Before  Dr.  Alexander  completed  his  address,  over  in  the 
City  Park  a  few  blocks  away,  real  Rappahannock  Indians, 
descendants  of  those  redskins  who  inhabited  this  area,  launched 
into  a  series  of  yells,  with  accompanying  dances  and  waving 
of  tomahawks  over  their  heads,  and  gave  to  the  people  an 
exhibition  of  the  tribal  dance  of  their  ancestors,  a  preliminary 
to  an  informal  severance  <'\  diplomatic  relations  with  pale  faces 
or  some  other  tribe  of  Indians  that  had  incurred  their  enmity. 
This  spectacular  ceremony  was  accompanied  by  music  from  a 
band  representing  a  modern  fighting  element,  the  marines. 

Again  the  crowd  scattered  over  the  city.  People  kept  open 
house  that  day.  Besides  the  private  entertaining,  large  dinners 
were  served  in  Hurkamp  Park,  and  other  selected  places'  to 
thousands  of  marines  from  Quantico,  as  well  as  to  all  those 
who  came  unprovided  with  their  own  luncheons.  A  banquet 
was  given  by  the  city  at  Princess  Anne  Hotel  to  two  hundred 
invited  guests.  Prior  to  the  luncheon  a  reception  was  held 
there  by  Governor  Davis,  who  shook  hands  with  hundreds  of 
people.  Practically  a  reception  was  in  progress  at  this  hotel 
during  the  whole  morning.  Many  ladies  had  been  appointed 
by  the  Chairman  and  the  Mayor  on  the  official  Reception 
Committee.  Thev  met  there  at  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning 
to  greet  the  guests.  The  luncheon  was  beautifully  appointed 
and  served  at  round  tables,  holding  eight.  A  long  table  ex- 
tended across  the  end  of  the  large  dining  hall,  where  sat  Gov- 
ernor Davis  and  Mrs.  Davis,  the  speakers  and  other  dis- 
tinguished guests.  Mayor  and  Mrs.  King,  Chairman  Brannan. 
Judge  John  T.  Goolrick  and  other  city  officials  and  their  wives. 
Music  was  furnished  during  the  luncheon  by  the  Franklin 
Orchestra  of  the  city. 

After  the  luncheon,  the  biggest  event  of  the  Celebration, 
the  Parade  started  to  move.  It  is  not  the  part  of  this  his- 
torian to  describe  the  work  or  the  executive  ability  of  those 
in  charge,  that  led  up  to  the  final  accomplishment  of  this 
pageant  of  exquisite  beauty,  or  the  forty-five  floats  exhibited 
in  this  parade.  The  scene:-,  were  perfect  and  carried  out  the 
idea  of  the  town's  history.     Mrs.  L.  L.  Coghill,  Chairman  of 

192 


The  Order  of  Parade 

this,  the  principal  feature  of  the  Anniversary  Celebration, 
worked  out  the  entire  scheme  giving  her  personal  attention 
to  each  float,  in  the  outline  of  its  general  plan,  details  and 
coloring.  The  beauty  and  reality  of  the  parade  surprised 
even  the  most  optimistic.  The  closest  attention  was  paid  to 
the  genuine  historical  aspects  of  each  period  visualized,  and 
the  characters  and  costumes  were  wisely  chosen.  The  parade 
was  nearly  two  miles  long,  and  took  one  hour  to  pass  in 
review.  A  fleet  of  airplanes  circled  over  the  city  and  gave  a 
modern  touch  to  the  picturesque  setting. 

To  Mrs.  Coghill  and  her  committee  the  multitude  paid 
tribute  in  applause. 

Led  by  a  platoon  of  police,  the  parade  passed  as  follows : 
Chief  Marshall  Edgar  M.  Young  and  his  two  chief  aides, 
W.  S.  Embrey  and  J.  Conway  Chichester.  Three  color- 
bearers,  one  each  for  the  American  flag,  the  Colonial  flag  and 
the  Virginia  State  flag  followed.  The  music  for  this,  the  first 
division,  was  furnished  by  the  United  States  Cavalry  Band 
from  Fort  Myer  and  behind  it  came  Troop  K,  3rd  United 
States  Cavalry,  Fort  Myer.  The  glistening  brown  horses 
and  the  snappy  appearance  of  the  troopers  brought  forth  the 
plaudits  of  the  crowds.  The  United  States  Marine  Post  Band, 
from  Quantico,  followed,  heading  the  second  division,  which 
was  composed  entirely  of  floats  giving  Fredericksburg's  250 
years  in  picture.  This  display  arranged  under  the  direction 
of  Mrs.  L.  L.  Coghill,  brought  forth  most  favorable  comment. 
No  important  point  in  Fredericksburg's  long  series  of  his- 
toric events  was  overlooked. 

It  began  with  floats  of  the  four  tribes  of  Indians  in  this 
section  which  recognized  the  great  king  Powhatan  as  their 
ruler,  the  Mattaponi,  Chickahominy,  Pamunkey  and  the  Rap- 
pahannock tribes.  The  war  paint  of  the  redskins  stood  out 
in  deep  contrast  to  the  pure  white  of  the  floats.  On  down 
through  the  days  of  Capt.  John  Smith  and  the  men  who 
established  a  colony  here  came  the  floats,  depicting  and  dem- 
onstrating in  brilliant  succession  the  history  of  the  town  in 
every    aspect    of  its    political  and    social    life.      There    was 

193 


Sonic  of  the  Beautiful  Floats 

Washington  and  his  cherry  tree,  Washington  as  the  student, 
John  Paul  Jones  who  once  worked  in  a  store  here ; 
Revolutionary  generals;  ducking  stools,  pillories  and 
stocks;  the  peace  hall  attended  hv  Washington  and  his  officers; 
"To  live  and  Die  in  Dixie,"  showing  typical  darkies  before 
the  war;  "The  Blue  and  Gray",  Dr.  James  P.  Smith,  last 
of  "Stonewall''  Jackson's  staff,  who  participated  in  other 
festivities  during  the  day,  and  Maj.  T.  B.  Robinson,  of  the 
Union  Army,  riding  side  hv  side  in  an  old  shay  drawn  by 
the  principal  motive  power  of  that  day,  oxen.  One  of  the 
purposes  of  the  celebration  of  the  city's  250th  birthday  was 
to  acquaint  the  public  with  Fredericksburg's  past,  and  certainly 
that  past  was  visibly  before  the  eyes  of  the  onlookers.  Each 
float  in  passing  received  its  meed  of  praise  and  applause. 
Ir  would  be  a  pleasure  to  describe  them  all,  but  the  scope  of 
the  present  volume  will  permit  only  a  brief  sketch  of  this 
beautiful  feature. 

The  Knights  of  the  Golden  Horseshoe,  personified  by 
the  gallant  boys  of  Spotsylvania,  represented  this  splendid 
band  of  former  Virginians  whose  ride  across  the  mountains 
brought  them  everlasting  fame 

"Virginia"  was  truly  regal  in  its  setting.  P>etween  four 
white  eagle  topped  columns  a  beautiful  and  stately  young 
woman  clad  in  white  and  gold  draperies  stood  over  the  pros- 
trate form  of  the  tyrant  imperiously  proclaiming  in  her  po^e 
"Sic  Semper  Tvrannis".  the  proud  motto  of  the  State. 

The  shades  of  morning  were  used  to  make  this  one  of 
the  most  attractive  of  the  floaty  it  being  our  Dawn  of  Day. 
Pink  draperies  with  morning  glories  twining  over  them — - 
pink,  blue,  white  and  purple,  presented  a  beautiful  background 
for  the  figures  of  the  typical  group  of  men  and  women  pre- 
senting and  receiving  the  "Leased  Land"  commission  from 
Governor  Berkeley. 

The  float  of  the  period  of  160R.  which  well  represented 
the  story  intended,  was  the  Captain  John  Smith  float.  That 
distinguished  man  with  his  two  companions,  was  shown  moor- 

194 


Floats  Depict  Town's  Story 

ing  his  boat,  on  the  shore  of  the  Rappahannock.  An  old 
Indian  and  his  young  son  (real  Indians  of  the  Pamunkey 
tribe)  were  stepping  into  the  boat,  intensely  interested  in  the 
beads  and  other  baubles  which  Captain  Smith  temptingly  holds 
out  as  barter. 

An  unique  and  most  interesting  feature  was  the  coach 
containing  "Col.  Henry  Willis"  —  the  top  man  of  the  town  — 
and  Col.  William  Byrd  and  his  fifteen  year  old  wife  going  to 
visit  at  Willis  Hill.  The  coach  was  mounted  high  and  the 
body  glass  encased,  with  steps  that  let  down;  there  were  old 
time  tallow  candles  in  holders  for  light.  Sitting  in  state  with 
her  lordly  spouse  and  the  top  man  of  the  town,  was  the  quaint 
and  pretty  little  fifteen  year  old  bride,  doubtless  enjoying  the 
mimic  occasion  as  much  as  her  predecessor  did  the  real  one. 

The  float  "Revolutionary  Generals  of  Fredericksburg" 
was  one  that  brought  much  cheering.  A  group  of  popular 
young  men  in  Colonial  uniforms  with  swords  and  side  arms, 
representing  Washington,  Mercer,  Weedon  and  others,  were 
the  principals  in  this. 

Following  this  came  one  representing  our  first  postoffice. 
General  Weedon,  Postmaster;  scene  taken  from  the  small 
room  in  the  Rising  Sun  Tavern,  and  the  characters  all  de- 
scendants of  General  Weedon. 

The  "Peace  Ball"  float  was  copied  from  the  celebrated 
painting,  a  colored  engraving  of  which  (given  by  Mr.  Gordon) 
hangs  over  the  mantel  in  the  Mary  Washington  House.  This 
was  gorgeous  in  decorations  of  black  and  gold,  which  threw 
into  high  relief  the  picturesque  costumes  and  coloring  of  Colo- 
nial days.  Mary  Washington,  her  son  George,  and  the  young 
French  lord  Lafayette  were  the  outstanding  figures. 

The  Ducking  Stool,  showing  also  a  Pillory,  Stocks,  and 
a  refractory  wife  perched  upon  the  stool  about  to  receive  a 
ducking,  caused  much  hilarity. 

The  Battles  of  "Fredericksburg"  and  "Appomattox" 
were  realistic  in  effect,  the  latter  shown  by  an  old  Confederate 

195 


Chorus  Songs  Arc  Thrilling 

soldier  leaning  on  his  musket  with   the  beloved   flag  he   fol- 
lowed for  tour  years  furled  amidst  the  stacked  guns. 

'*To  live  and  die  in  Dixie"  may  well  be  described  as  a 
scene  typical  of  the  "Old  South."  A  negro  cabin  ornamented 
with  pine  saplings  and  an  old  darkey  sitting  at  ease  with  his 
pipe,  in  the  doorway,  and  just  outside  a  contented  "old 
Mammy,"  in  characteristic  pose.  The  really  excellent  pageant 
came  down  to  the  present  day  with  'Woman's  Work."  "The 
American  Legion" — "Armistice"  and  "The  Mope  of  the 
Future" — the  latter  an  immense  float  filled  with  happy  chil- 
dren Even  after  the  passing  of  the  last  float  there  was  little 
diminution  of  the  masses  of  people  on  Washington  Avenue — 
apparently  their  favorite  stage  setting 

A  Marine  Band  concert  filled  in  an  hour  or  more,  delight- 
ing the  audience  with  a  wide  range  of  selections. 

Grouped  on  the  immense  platform  a  chorus  of  one  hun- 
dred voices  followed.  The  program  was  attractively  arranged 
with  a  series  of  period  songs,  several  of  which  were  illustrated 
with  tableaux.  The  solemn  strains  of  "America"  were  thrill- 
ingly  .rendered  amid  patriotic  scenes,  the  people  standing 
between  the  monument  to  Mary  the  Mother  of  Washington, 
and  that  of  the  gallant  Revolutionary  General  Hugh  Mercer, 
and  on  ground  consecrated  by  the  blood  of  the  armies  of  the 
North  and  the  South  in  the  Civil  War  where  each  army  had 
planted,  at  different  times,  its  guns,  and  on  ground  that  be- 
longed to  Washington's  family.  The  hills  of  the  Rappahan- 
nock, once  crowned  so  threateningly  with  battlements  of  artil- 
lery, echoed  the  volume  of  sound,  until  it  rung  across  the 
valley. 

"The  Land  of  Sky  Blue  Water"  a  period  song,  ren- 
dered by  Mr.  Taylor  Scott  in  his  magnificent  baritone,  was 
illustrated  with  an  Indian  tableau  posed  by  State  Normal 
School  students  in  costume.  "Hail  Columbia"  by  an  entire 
chorus  and  "Drink  to  me  only  with  Thine  Eyes"  a  song  of 
Colonial  period,  by  male  voices.  "The  Star  Spangled  Banner" 
period  of  iSu  was  sung  with  tableau  by  American  Soldiers. 

196 


1  iik   250T11    I  >lk  I'll  DAY 
Three  of  the  Floats  in   the   I'anuie.  May  _>i,    k;-M 


Mr.   Whitbcck  Entertains 

Civil  War  Period:  "Old  Folks  at  Home,"  "The  Roses 
Nowhere  Bloom  So  Fair  As  In  Virginia,"  tune  of  "Maryland, 
My  Maryland,"  "Carry  Me  Back  to  Ole  Virginia,"  by  a  bevy 
of  young  girls  attired  in  frocks'  of  "the  sixties." 

The  Battle  Hymn  of  the  Republic  and  Dixie  with  its  ever 
inspiring  melody  were  sung,  and  then  the  Spanish  American 
War  period  exemplified  by  "A  Hot  Time  in  the  Old  Town  To- 
Night." 

The  songs  and  tableaux  of  the  World  War  period  struck 
a  more  tender  note,  and  revived  in  many  hearts  the  anxieties 
and  sorrows  of  that  epoch  in  the  World's  History,  when  days 
of  apprehension  and  sleepless  nights  were  the  "common  fate 
of  all."  The  Tableau  shown  with  it,  represented  a  Red  Cross 
Nurse,  a  Soldier  and  a  Sailor  of  the  United  States. 

"Auld  Lang  Syne,"  sung  by  the  Chorus,  ended  the  Con- 
cert and  the  great  crowd  scattered  like  leaves  before  the  wind, 
many  hastening  to  attend  private  receptions,  others  to  get  ready 
for  the  public  ball  at  the  Princess  Anne  Hotel  at  which  would 
gather  all  the  notables  who  had  helped  to  make  the  day  suc- 
cessful. The  Mayor  of  the  City,  Dr.  King  and  Mrs.  King, 
gave  an  official  reception  at  their  home  on  Prince  Edward 
Street  tendered  to  Governor  and  Mrs.  Davis  and  other  guests 
of  the  Anniversary  occasion.  Among  the  special  guests  pres- 
ent, in  addition  to  Gov.  and  Mrs.  Davis  and  staff,  were!  Gen. 
and  Mrs.  John  A.  Lejeune  and  staff,  Gen.  Smedley  D.  Butler, 
Hon.  Herbert  L.  Bridgman  and  Hon.  Chas.  B.  Alexander. 
Several  hundred  citizens  of  the  city  called  and  met  Fredericks- 
burg's distinguished  guests.  The  reception  was  a  brilliant 
and  most  enjoyable  affair. 

Later  Mr.  and  Mrs.  C.  O'Connor  Goolrick  entertained 
at  a  smaller  reception  a  number  of  their  friends  and  some 
invited  guests  of  the  city,  including  many  of  those  at  the 
reception  given  by  the  Mayor. 

The  reception  at  "Kenmore"  to  all  visiting  men,  and  men 
citizens  was  one  of  the  biggest  affairs  of  the  evening,  and  the 
hospitality  of  the  host,  Mr.  H.  A.  Whitbeck,  made  the;  occa- 

197 


Ball  at  the  Princess  Anne 

sion  especially  pleasant.  An  hour  or  more  was  spent  in  good 
fellowship,  the  mingling  of  old  friends  and  hearty  greetings 
to  new  ones.  "Kenmore,"  grand  old  mansion  that  it  is,  was 
resplendent  under  the  lights  and  beautiful  decorations  and 
Mr.  Whitbeck's  party  for  the  men  was  one  of  the  most  attrac- 
tive of  all  the  social  events. 

As  a  fitting  climax  to  the  unique  celebration  which  will 
go  down  the  annals  of  Fredericksburg  as  one  of  the  greatest 
in  its  history,  was  a  Colonial  ball  at  Hotel  Princess  Anne.  In 
the  early  part  of  the  evening  the  hotel  was  crowded  with  a 
merry  throng  of  guests  which  almost  prohibited  dancing  for 
the  lack  of  space.  The  lobby,  ladies'  parlor  and  ball  room 
were  filled  to  overflowing  with  handsomely  gowned  women 
and  men  in  evening  clothes.  With  an  unusually  good  orchestra 
from  the  Marine  Post  at  Quantico  supplying  the  music,  the 
ball  was  opened  by  a  grand  march,  led  by  Governor  West- 
moreland Davis  and  Mrs.  Judge  John  T.  Goolrick,  who  wore 
a  handsome  evening  dress  of  sapphire  blue. 

As  the  evening  advanced  the  crowd  of  spectators  which 
occupied  much  of  the  floor  space,  thinned  out  and  more  room 
was  available  for  the  dancing  couples.  About  midnight  a 
supply  of  horns,  confetti  and  streamers  were  distributed  to 
all  present  and  the  dance  assumed  a  merry  cabaret  aspect.  The 
orchestra  was  full  of  pep,  as  were  the  dancers,  and  the  scene 
was  one  of  much  gaiety  and  fun.  Dancing  continued  until 
two  o'clock  Thursday  morning,  when  lights  were  out  and  the 
gayest  day  in  the  long  annals  of  the  Picture  City  between  the 
hills  of  the  Rappahannock,  "historic  Fredericksburg."  became 
one  of  her  treasured  memories;  not  to  be  forgotten,  but  to  be 
kept  alive  with  her  traditions  by  the  descendants  of  the  splen- 
did men  and  women  who  have  made  and  preserved  her  his- 
torv,  and  caused  her  to  become  known  to  the  world. 


198 


Appendix 


Thomas  Jefferson  in  the  Virginia  Convention  of  1776 
was  the  successful  patron  and  aggressive  advocate  of  the 
resolution  for  the  appointment  of  a  Committee  to  revise 
certain  laws  in  order  that  they  might  be  in  accordance  with 
and  conform  to  the  changed  status  and  conditions  of  the  State, 
from  a  Colony  of  Great  Britain  to  an  independent  sovereignty. 

This  Committee,  consisting  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  George 
Mason  of  Gunston  Hall,  George  Wythe,  Edmund  Pendleton 
and  Thomas  L.  Lee,  met  in  the  Rising  Sun  Tavern  in  Fred- 
ericksburg on  January  13,  1777,  where  they  inaugurated  and 
formulated  bills  of  great  and  far  reaching  import,  which  were 
subsequently  enacted  into  laws  by  the  Legislature  of  Virginia 
and  followed  by  the  other  thirteen  Sates  of  the  Confederation. 

These  four  bills  were  then  considered  as  forming  a  sys- 
tem by  which  every  fibre  of  ancient  or  future  aristocracy 
would  be1  eradicated  and  a  foundation  laid  for  a  government 
truly  republican. 

To  only  four  of  these  we  make  reference — namely — 

THE  REPEAL  OF  THE  OLD  ENGLISH  LAWS 
OF  PRIMOGENITURE  then  the  law  of  the  State,  by  which 
the  eldest  son  as  a  matter  of  law  and  right  became  by  descent 
entitled  to  property  rights  and  privileges  above  and  beyond 
all  other  heirs  : — 

THE  REPEAL  OF  ALL  ENTAIL  which  would  pre- 
vent the  accumulation  and  perpetuation  of  wealth  in  select 
families  and  preserve  the  soil  of  the  country  for  its  people, 
thus  promoting  an  equality  of  opportunity  for  the  average 
citizen : — 

199 


THE  ESTABLISHMENT  OF  PURLIC  EDUCA- 
TION AXD  OF  ELEMENTARY  SCHOOLS  FOR  ALL 
CHILDREN  —  OF  COLLEGES  TEACHING  THE 
HIGHEST  GRADE  OF  SCIENCE— From  this  has  evolved 
the  present  public  school  system,  and  Jefferson  being  saturated 
with  this  idea  commenced  by  the  establishment  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Virginia.  A  great  service  performed  by  this  Com- 
mittee fostered  and  largelv  encouraged  bv  fefferson  and 
Mason  was  its  BILL  FOR  RELIGIOUS  FREEDOM— 
which  met  with  more  active  opposition  than  did  the  other 
three,  for  it  did  not  become  a  law  until  t 785.  By  it  the  State 
received  its  charter  of  divorcement  from  the  Church — religion 
and  politics  were  separated.  Tt  provided  "that  henceforth  no 
man  could  be  compelled  to  frequent  or  support  any  religious 
worship  place  or  ministry,  but  all  men  should  be  free  to  pro- 
fess and  by  argument  maintain  their  opinions  in  matters  of 
religion  and  the  same  should  in  no  wise  diminish,  enlarge  or 
effect  their  civil  capacity." 

No  elaborate  or  extended  thesis  or  dissertation  on  the 
too  apparent  merit-,  virtue,  value  and  importance  of  these 
measures,  in  this  brief  sketch,  is  attempted.  The  purpose 
really  being,  with  emphasis,  to  declare  without  successful  con- 
tradiction or  any  possible  doubt  or  dispute  that  in  the  Rising 
Sun  Tavern  at  Fredericksburg  on  January  13,  1777,  these  all 
pervading,  all  important  laws  of  the  greatest  import  were 
formulated  and  inaugurated  by  the  Committee  referred  to. 


200 


This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below 


NOV  1  1  1951 


•J    1  :.i»  7.'::i 


i.-  I~J1~>-X. 


P8G6      Gnolrick   ■ 

Historic 
F red er i c k sbur g . 


AA      000  019  368    o 


TY  of  CALIFORNIA 


UBRs 


